A lot can change in a week in the fast-moving world of Scottish football. Just ask Craig Levein and Steven Naismith.
So when it comes to surveying a year, it can feel like an eternity ago, especially when it comes to the change in mood at Celtic.
Just over 12 months ago, the Parkhead side emerged from yet another bruising European disappointment. They conceded two goals in the De Kuip arena where Gustaf Lagerbielke and Odin Thiago Holm got themselves sent off.
Brendan Rodgers had to marshal all his managerial nous to make sure the scoreline remained respectable.
The very mention of those names is another marker of just how far Celtic have come since. Lagerbielke has been shipped over to The Netherlands on loan, while Holm, still technically in the building, is so far down the midfield pecking order that he’s played a total of 24 minutes in his three appearances so far this season.
That defeat at Feyenoord came a few weeks after a goalless draw at home to Steven Maclean’s St Johnstone (I told you things change quickly), which in turn followed a League Cup defeat at Kilmarnock. It was the start of the supporter unrest at Celtic which ended up with poor Santa being booed when he tried to bring some Christmas cheer to a noisily unhappy Parkhead.
It’s barely believable that was only a few short months ago.
The feeling around the place now could scarcely be more different. Bratislava battered in the Champions League. Full points in the Premiership without conceding so much as a goal. Falkirk hit for five when, at one point, another League Cup upset could have been on the cards.
Rodgers said he really enjoyed the Bairns’ bold approach, even although it ended in defeat. He was certainly smiling when he surveyed the stats surrounding his own side.
It was Celtic’s 20th match without defeat. Numbers which get even more impressive when you realise that 19 of them ended in victories. A run of results that builds momentum and has other sides wondering how they’re going to derail the bandwagon.
Trickier times lie ahead, clearly, with Champions League assignments at Dortmund and Atalanta looming on Celtic’s horizon next month.
Perhaps the best indicator of the progress they’ve made is the fact they’ll travel with little to no fear.
Having made a big splash in the new look format, Celtic’s next task is to keep their heads above the water in what have recently been very treacherous seas. If they can do that, the plain sailing of the past few months could continue for quite some time to come.