There was something quite mesmeric about Aaron Mooy’s play in Australia’s World Cup match against Tunisia recently.

There was nothing extravagant about it though. No spell-binding ball skills or box-to-box running.

It was only after watching the game for perhaps half an hour that you began to realise that Mooy had featured in virtually every passage of play whether it be Australia going forward or Tunisia attacking.

As the second half wore on and Australia were forced to defend their one-goal advantage it seemed that he must tire. But no; there the Celtic man was, deep into stoppage time, breaking up another attack inside his own box and carrying the ball away from danger before drawing a foul. He had single-handedly taken the sting out of Tunisia’s attacks in those final frenetic moments.

The English commentators seemed similarly drawn to Mooy’s performance, referencing him every few minutes as he broke up attacks or launched them. It was a thoroughly professional display from a player who seemed utterly in control of his surroundings and at home in the world’s most demanding football environment.

And yet prior to departing for Qatar several Celtic supporters – lacking any appreciation for Mooy’s role in the team or indeed of how Ange Postecoglou wants them to play – sought to disparage him.

Perhaps they were the same people who never really appreciated what Neil Lennon brought to Martin O’Neill’s team 20 years ago. Lennon always made himself available, rarely wasted a pass and maintained the rhythm of Celtic’s midfield. Mooy does all of this too and before the end of this season there will be cause to celebrate Postecoglou’s decision to bring him here.

Hail Cesar

The unveiling of the Billy McNeill statue in Bellshill at the weekend was one of those occasions when most of those present felt privileged to have been born into the Celtic family.

This brawny Lanarkshire town is a fitting place for our greatest-ever captain’s permanent memorial. He was born and brought up there before starring for the famous Our Lady’s High School football team in Motherwell and, later, Blantyre Victoria.

McNeill, perhaps more than any other Celtic player in the post-war era, made my father’s generation proud that he played for the club.

It wasn’t simply that he was an excellent centre half, it was something about the way he held himself and conducted himself. As both player and manager he had the physique of a battlefield warrior and the eloquence of a diplomat.

McNeill was respected throughout the world of football. French journalists – who had previously been accustomed to the monoculturalism of British footballers – were stunned and delighted to hear the captain speak fluently in their language during Celtic’s Lisbon season.

He was also respected by their greatest rivals Rangers and, in turn, he always respected them. Some people may have been surprised to see two Rangers icons at the statue’s unveiling in John Greig and Willie Henderson, but I wasn’t.

During their Rangers careers and afterwards these two great players were nothing other than respectful about Celtic and the players in the Hoops that they faced.

Those who know more about this than me have told me that McNeill and others in the Lisbon Lions era formed genuine friendships with some of their Rangers counterparts of that time.

Back then, the rivalry was just as fierce as it is today and the cultural issues surrounding it just as edgy. But there seemed to be a shared kinship based on a mutual acknowledgement of the unique pressures faced by players from these two clubs.

Big club is as big club does

The sound of silence around Parkhead this weather has rarely been sweeter. At other times a five-week hiatus in the middle of the season would have given rise to all manner of excursions and alarums sparking the vivid imaginations of the football press.

There’s been little transfer speculation because, as Postecoglou announced last month, any transfer business has already been concluded. Nor have there been any sounds of dissatisfaction coming from players unhappy at not being selected as often as they’d have liked.

The trip to Australia has provided an extra zero or two to Celtic’s already formidable war chest. More than that, it gave them two competitive games and the opportunity to bond the squad even more tightly.

The matches themselves were good. I was particularly impressed by the players’ fitness against Sydney FC barely three days after a 23-hour flight. And against a strong English Premiership side in Everton they dominated from start to finish in a game they ought to have won well before the penalty kicks.

Celtic went into this period nine points ahead of Rangers and there might have been fears about breaking momentum.

My Parkhead sources tell me, though, that the Hoops will emerge from it an even stronger and fitter unit. This will be reinforced by the knowledge that they built their points advantage during a two-month period when their squad strength was tested to the limit by a three-games-a-week playing schedule.

And they also have the captain, Calum McGregor, back refreshed and raring to go. In normal circumstances, you’d be depressed at the prospect of losing your most influential player for several weeks.

Yet few players in European football have played as many minutes of football as McGregor has in the last three or four seasons and he was due a decent break.

The fact that the overall performances of this side haven’t been adversely affected in his absence reinforces the sense of security and optimism around Parkhead.

Cup of joy

This week marks the 25th anniversary of a Celtic cup win that’s often been overlooked in the club’s recent history.

On November 30 1997, Wim Jansen’s side defeated Dundee United 3-0 in the League Cup final played at Ibrox. Yet there were several landmark aspects about it.

Not the least of these was that this was the club’s first League Cup triumph in 15 years – a period in which the Hoops had been beaten in four finals.

This included the defeat by Raith Rovers three years previously. You’re tempted to describe this game as a ‘humiliation’ but this would be disrespectful to the Kirkcaldy side who defended heroically, attacked in numbers when they could and deserved their chance in the penalty shoot-out.

Celtic Way:

Celtic’s win against Dundee United – in the same stadium – wiped away that bad memory and set them up for one of their most important ever league title wins. It seemed to imbue the team with belief and gave us a glimpse of what Henrik Larsson was capable of. Barely a month later, the Hoops would comprehensively defeat Rangers at Parkhead.

Rangers, aided of course by a clutch of expensive players they couldn’t afford, won the next two titles, but I believe the foundations of Celtic’s rebirth as a club following Fergus McCann’s takeover in 1993 were beginning to be laid at this time.

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