As a youngster, Stephen McManus was not allowed to attend Old Firm games to support Celtic because his family were too concerned for his safety. The Celtic captain is all grown up now and capable of standing on his own two feet, as he proved quite vividly in the last Glasgow derby just ten days ago.

The mêlée that erupted just seconds after Celtic secured the 2-1 victory last Wednesday that kept the Clydesdale Bank Premier League title race alive, saw McManus and his Rangers counterpart, Barry Ferguson, squaring up in a manner that belied their friendship off the pitch. While the purists — and perhaps his parents — were irked by the lack of decorum, the Celtic fans were not. McManus earned his badge of honour, in their eyes, for standing up for his team-mates once the fracas started.

It was not a subject that McManus wanted to make too much of yesterday. It’s not just the fact that the 25-year-old is aware that inflammatory talk and deeds in the Old Firm arena can provoke trouble on the streets. McManus is not the sort to hype anything: this is the player who was taken to hospital during the first derby of the season at Ibrox after being knocked unconscious by the elbow of Daniel Cousin, and never uttered a word.

“As soon as we came off the pitch and came into the dressing-room after the last Old Firm game, it was forgotten about,” McManus said. “It is done and dusted. I know the Rangers lads will feel the same. The incident got blown out of proportion but these things are part and parcel of football. People do not understand the demands of players in these games.”

The fact that the main combatants were Scotland colleagues — McManus and Ferguson had to be separated, while Gary Caldwell, of Celtic, and David Weir both received one-game bans for violent conduct — seemed to hint at some ill-feeling within the international camp. “No,” McManus insisted. However, there was a school of thought among his own supporters that felt McManus had finally taken on the mantle of responsibility that goes with the captain’s armband.

McManus inherited the captaincy from Neil Lennon last summer but it took Lennon’s return to the club as first-team coach three weeks ago to bring a fiesty new edge to the mild-mannered centre-back. McManus admits that the role of captain is challenging. “I have certainly found out that I have to take more on board,” he said. “I am still learning. However, the icing on the cake would be to get my hands on the Premier League trophy.

“Being captain is different from just playing. All I can do is drive the players the way I push myself, which is to work harder. Off the pitch, though, I have far more responsibilities as captain of Celtic than I ever thought. I certainly have far more people telling me what we should or should not do.”

The fact that tomorrow’s re-match at Celtic Park is the third encounter between the Glasgow rivals in four weeks illustrates how easily tension can surface. McManus, however, is not the sort of person who becomes easily put off by such close proximity with your greatest rivals; indeed, the Celtic captain simply cannot get enough of the Old Firm occasion.

“They are great games to play in, if you are lucky enough to do that,” he said. “However, whether you are a Celtic fan or a Rangers fan, we all feel the same about this match. These are great occasions, which is why people keep coming back.

“People were saying after the last game that we were physical. We just wanted to win and so did Rangers. It was a game we felt we had to win. Emotions were running high, and the bottom line after losing twice to Rangers this season, was that that we could not afford to lose. Titles are won and lost on Old Firm games.”

Gordon Strachan sought to explain the post-match dust-up ten days ago by citing the greater influence of Scottish players on the fixture now. “When I first came to Glasgow three years ago, the game was more sanitised but now it seems as if the game has gone back to the 1980s with the physical edge,” the Celtic manager said. “There are more local lads, and Scottish players, in the teams now and that has added more tension.”

Both Strachan and McManus were keen to pay tribute to the edge that two of their own Scots, Paul Hartley and Barry Robson, have added to the champions’ midfield as they seek to reclaim control from Rangers. The pair subdued Ferguson ten days ago and will be keen to exert the same influence tomorrow. Such was the glowing tribute from Strachan yesterday that you suspect that Scott Brown, the £4.5 million acquisition last summer, will have to be content with a place on the bench after serving his three-game ban.

“Barry and Paul have been great for us,” Strachan said. “Their energy is something that has made us happy. As a newer player, we are happy with Barry but he never seems to be happy with himself. He is always beating himself up in training if a pass goes astray. We have to hold him back at times but I love that enthusiasm.”

McManus concurs. “We’ve not had two players in central midfield who have played together regularly but with injuries elsewhere, Paul and Barry have taken their chance and done really well.

“When you play for Celtic and Rangers, pressure comes with the territory,” he added. “Good players relish it. The title has been exciting this season, but we don’t look any further than the next game. This one is Rangers. But we believe we can win the title.”