The temptation is to steam in with fire and fury, taking bodies and predicting doom. It may be cathartic but such rhetoric, while understandable in the aftermath of stinging defeat, obscures the reality of Rangers’ current situation. 

While momentum is important, it can be halted or set in motion once again. Some will point to the parallels with the noughties 6-2 defeat at Celtic Park as a bellwether of a tectonic shift.  Just as readily though it can be the mirror of another 3-0 defeat at Parkhead in 2011 when a Gary Hooper inspired side tore Rangers asunder. Nobody gave Walter Smith’s side hope in the hours that followed. They went on to win a double. 

While faith in the coach has been dented by such a comprehensive defeat, Giovanni van Bronckhorst is still the man that halted a brilliant Ajax side’s domestic dominance and led Feyenoord to title glory. Dave Vos still rose through the coaching ranks to become a key figure at perhaps the most respected footballer factory in world football at Ajax. Roy Makaay isn’t going to lose the obvious supreme confidence he carries himself with. Their first job is to emphasise that nothing is decided yet. Heroes can still rise and trophies are there to be won. Then it’s back to basics and that starts with the defence.  

Borna Barisic’s display was so wretched and gutless that he can’t be considered against Hearts. The re-emergence of Leon Balogun means the backline will undoubtedly look a lot more solid in the weeks ahead. Filip Helander will improve that outlook further and add genuine international quality.  

Young Calvin Bassey has everything in his locker to be a top-class central defender in time but his deficiencies in the air and his lack of positional nous were cruelly exposed by a Celtic side on a different level to anything else he’s faced as a centre-half. He’s better at full-back for now where he surely finds himself first choice. 

On the right-hand side, there will be doubters, there always is with the captain, but we know from experience James Tavernier always bounces back.  

READ MORE: Rangers are overrun in 'cataclysmic' first half as Celtic's relentless pressure pays - Data match report

Midfield will also look more cohesive in the days and months ahead. Ryan Jack’s return adds a first pick presence and a sitting two of the Scotland international and Glen Kamara has more than enough graft and bite to give anyone a run for their money.  

Add a fit Aaron Ramsay or Joe Aribo as the cherry atop the cake and the makings of something much more solid are clear. 

At the top end of the pitch, Alfredo Morelos brings a nuisance factor no other Rangers striker can match as well as a constant goal threat. Kemar Roofe hasn’t got his season started yet but there’s no doubting his ability when he gets himself sharp. 

Amad Diallo looked lost amid the Parkhead storm but the kid is too talented not to offer a contribution in the months ahead. He has already shown at Ross County he can make a tangible impact, although perhaps this fixture, with the specificity of physical performance it requires, is a step too far for the time being. Ryan Kent is another who is simply too good to remain lost in a trough of turgid performance. 

It’s never easy for a manager to arrive mid-season and shape a group of men, particularly when they were so committed to a previous leader. Van Bronckhorst made it look easy for long enough that he made us forget the scale of the challenge. 

It was readily apparent how much Celtic’s players were willing to leave out on the pitch for Ange Postecoglou. There looks to be total commitment to his ideas coursing through their dressing room. The energy they expended was simply not matched. Nowhere near it. 

The Rangers manager must aim for the same buy-in from his own.

And that must begin by first persuading them of a reality that cuts through the noise - the title, the Scottish Cup, the £40m Holy Grail of the Champions League, it's all still there for the taking.