There are moments in a title race where football stops being about tactics and starts becoming about energy. About noise. About belief. The kind that does not come from the dugout or the training ground, but from the stands.
Celtic have been searching for that spark.
The performances have not always matched the standards expected at Parkhead this season. Chances have come and gone, momentum has slipped at key moments, and the pressure has only intensified with Hearts and Rangers refusing to fall away.
Yet despite all of that, Celtic are still there. Still within touching distance. Still alive.
And on a tense afternoon against St Mirren, something felt different.
It was not just the result. Not just the narrow 1-0 win that keeps them within three points of the top. It was something else, something harder to measure but impossible to ignore.
Because before a ball was even kicked, a key piece of the Celtic Park puzzle had returned.
The Green Brigade were back.
After months of absence following disputes with the club, a pre match truce finally allowed the ultras group to take their place inside the stadium once again. For many, it was just another subplot in a complicated season.
But for those inside the ground, it quickly became clear this was much bigger than that.
The noise was different. The tension felt sharper. The energy, more urgent.
And right in the middle of it all was a player who had never experienced it before.
A moment that changed everything
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain had already shown glimpses of his quality since arriving in Glasgow. But this felt like something else entirely.
From the first whistle, he played like a man feeding off the occasion. Driving forward, demanding the ball, constantly pushing Celtic up the pitch. Even when a goal was ruled out, he did not fade. He stayed on it.
Then, in the 16th minute, the breakthrough came.
A loose ball inside the box. A quick reaction. A composed finish past Shamal George.
One chance. One goal. One moment that would decide the match.
But the story does not stop there.
Because as the game wore on, as the tempo dropped and St Mirren began to settle, Celtic found themselves in that familiar position. Leading, but not comfortable. In control, but not safe.
That is where seasons can turn.
And that is where something shifted again.
The feeling inside Parkhead
After the match, Oxlade-Chamberlain did not just talk about the goal. He talked about the atmosphere.
About what it felt like to finally experience Celtic Park at full voice.
“I could feel a difference, definitely, because I hadn’t experienced it before.
“The atmosphere has been great in previous games but it was nice to have those guys back and it’s good for all the fanbase.
“That was my first glimpse into the power those guys have in terms of the rest of the stadium and lifting the rest of the crowd.
“They can help us get over the line in tough games.
“The crowd will be massive for us and it was great to see them back in.
“We went over to that small section at the end and the noise they made and the passion they showed is going to be huge for us.
“Especially in games like that when it’s 1-0 and can be a bit cagey.
“That’s the time when you need the fans and they can make a massive difference for us.”
It is easy to overlook how much that matters.
But in games like this, where the margin for error disappears and every pass carries weight, that connection between players and supporters can become the difference.
Holding on when it mattered
Celtic did not run away with the game. They had chances to make it easier, moments where a second goal would have calmed everything down.
It never came.
Instead, they had to dig in. Defend. Stay focused.
Oxlade-Chamberlain, after a tireless display, was eventually replaced in the second half. His job done. His impact already clear.
And when the final whistle came, it was not just relief. It was belief.
“I’m happy with the goal, an important goal.
“We could have done it a bit easier.
“It’s the business end of the season and a wins a win. We had to defend well, be resilient and ultimately we did that.
“We are still in the race, right up there. We just focus on ourselves. Every game we want to win. Then let the rest take care of itself.
“If you get sidetracked looking at others around you then it can affect you.
“We control our own performances and results.
“We are not going to lie down.”
And that last line says everything.
Because this season has tested Celtic in ways few expected. But they are still here. Still pushing. Still refusing to fade away.
Now, with the Green Brigade back, with the atmosphere rising again, and with players beginning to feel that connection, there is a sense that something might just be building at the perfect time.
The question is whether it has come soon enough.
That answer is still to come.