Joey Barton has certainly talked the talk.
On Saturday at Celtic Park we’ll see if he can walk the walk.
Barton wasn’t brought to Rangers on the salary he’ll be picking up for the matches against Hamilton and Kilmarnock.
He was brought to Rangers to be their main man in the big games – and that means the Old Firm matches.
I can’t remember the exact words Barton used about Scott Brown when he signed, but it clearly suggested he thought he was the better player.
I don’t actually think it’s a head-to-head battle that will decide Saturday’s game.
Yes, there will no doubt be a couple of times they come together, but they’re both playing deeper than they did in their mid-20s so it won’t happen that often.
The most important thing is the influence they have on their team’s game plan.
In the Old Firm games I played they were more often than not very tight, and the big players on either side usually made the difference.
Brown has proved he can do just that but Barton still has to show us. Now is the time.
I would expect this to be a very different contest to the Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden.
Rangers were excellent that day and thoroughly deserved their win. But you would have to question whether they have improved since.
Celtic, on the other hand, are like night and day.
The progress since Brendan Rodgers took over has been massive.
I played in enough Old Firm games to know that there can be upsets. So, even though I think Celtic will win, it wouldn’t shock me if Rangers edged it.
But by the time they’ve played four of them, I would be very surprised if Celtic didn’t have the better record overall.
And I’d certainly be very surprised if they didn’t win the league.
* The transfer window has shut but I suspect that Paul Hartley hasn’t finished his business yet.
He’s already brought in one free agent, Tom Hateley, and there will probably be another.
There’s no getting away from the fact that taking Greg Stewart and Kane Hemmings out of that team leaves a huge hole.
If one wasn’t scoring, the other was. And Stewart’s assists were just as important as his goals.
The next signing Hartley makes could be the most important of the season. I hope there are some good options still out there for him to choose from.
* Another one of my old clubs, Forfar, are flying just now.
Gary Bollan’s got them off to a great start and they’ve won six games in a row.
And now they’ve got a match against the Welsh Premier league champions to look forward to.
I’m pretty open-minded about changes in Scottish football. I’m all for giving things a try.
So, let’s see if the introduction of Northern Irish and Welsh teams to the IRN-BRU Cup turns out to be a success.
Forfar will have it tough against The New Saints because they’re a full-time team but hopefully it will draw a decent crowd to Station Park.
It’s certainly got people talking, which can only be a good thing.