There may have been a slight sense of hope among Rangers fans surrounding the impending arrival of Steven Gerrard.
Looking set to undertake his first role in senior management, the Liverpool legend will have gotten a grim sense of the gulf that currently separates the Glasgow rivals.
In a game that could possibly seal Celtic's seventh successive league title, Brendan Rodgers' side were outstanding. Dominating proceedings from start to finish, the only surprising thing is that the scoreline was not higher in the end.
One feels 5-0 will suffice all the same.
Without the talismanic Moussa Dembele leading the line, any fears Celtic would suffer from his absence were quickly allayed as Odsonne Edouard delivered his first goal of the day after only 14 minutes.
If the first was the product of good movement in the box, the second was a ruthless demonstration of his individual talents.
James Forrest got one more for Celtic before the half-way mark; an incisive move made all the better by Mikael Lustig's celebration.
Better video of Constable Lustig. 😂 pic.twitter.com/R3MDPjOX7X
— Brian Doyle (@Stoneysnapper) April 29, 2018
With the day that was in it, and the opportunity to hoist more misery upon their rivals, Celtic scarcely slowed down in the second-half.
Tom Rogic was on-hand to take advantage of some questionable Rangers defending within two minutes of the restart.
Only a few minutes on and Callum McGregor was the beneficiary of some great work from Edouard to make it 5-0.
The pace and intensity took a slight downturn from this point with 5-0 seeming an acceptable margin to win the title on the back of.
Looking extremely comfortable nonetheless, it is difficult to foresee how any club - let alone Rangers - can hope to challenge Celtic's domestic dominance in the coming years.
With a Scottish Cup final against Motherwell still to come for Rodgers' men, the possibility of a double-treble is still very much on.
