"I don't think,” Ange Postecoglou said after his very first competitive Celtic match. “That we will ever be as badly prepared as we were tonight and that's on me.”

The Hoops had just drawn 1-1 with Danish Superliga side FC Midtjylland in the first leg of their Champions League qualifiers.

A back four of Anthony Ralston (pre-resurrection Ralston, you understand), Stephen Welsh, Nir Bitton (of course, it was the first European qualifier after all) and Greg Taylor started ahead of Vasilis Barkas between the sticks.

Ahead of them David Turnbull and Callum McGregor began alongside Ismaila Soro with Liel Abada and Ryan Christie flanking Odsonne Edouard in the front three.

It’s been a year since then – that was July 20 2021 – and so much has changed. More than enough, in fact, for a little perspective.

A league and League Cup double. A 32-game unbeaten league streak (that’s still ongoing into this season remember). Twenty-one new signings across two-and-a-bit windows. A support galvanised. A club reunited.

Of the team that played against Midtjylland a year ago, Ralston and Taylor are in with a chance of starting against Aberdeen in the season-opener next weekend. It’s possible Welsh is too given Carl Starfelt’s injury lay-off.

Context is key though. The difference between being forced into a Welsh-Bitton central-defensive pairing out of an almost total lack of alternatives and Welsh – or new defender Moritz Jenz – starting alongside freshly-minted permanent £6million signing Cameron Carter-Vickers because £4million Starfelt has a knock is both simple and stark. The presence of Joe Hart in goal is a jarring juxtaposition to the eminently flappable Barkas too.

Celtic Way:

Likewise, while Soro has recently gone to FC Arouca on loan there’s no reason the other two midfielders from a year ago won’t play a part against the Dons. David Turnbull has largely shown up so far in pre-season and McGregor is a stick-on for most matches barring injury. The difference then? Just the small matter of where to fit Reo Hatate, Matt O’Riley and Aaron Mooy, amongst others.

Up front, while Christie and Edouard are gone Abada is still at Parkhead…  now alongside the feared hit-squad of Kyogo Furuhashi, Giorgos Giakoumakis, Daizen Maeda and Jota.

Of the 12 substitutes against the Danes a year ago, Albian Ajeti, Osaze Urhoghide, Scott Bain, Liam Shaw, Dane Murray and James Forrest are all still at the club. Only the latter is likely to be involved against Aberdeen.

Leigh Griffiths, Tom Rogic, Boli Bolingoli and Ewan Henderson are all gone while Adam Montgomery and Conor Hazard are too, albeit only on loan.

Some more players will leave and certainly a case can be made one or two more might need to be recruited if the price and fit – particularly the fit – are right. But again, some perspective probably wouldn’t go amiss.

"I haven't done a great job so far because with the disruptions we've had,” Postecoglou said that night a year ago. “We haven't been able to bring the players in. My role is to try to reinforce and prepare this squad.”

You'd have to say it's largely been ‘job done’ on both counts since.

Celtic team that faced FC Midtjylland on July 20 2021: Barkas; Ralston, Welsh, Bitton, Taylor; Turnbull, Soro, McGregor; Abada, Edouard, Christie. Subs: Hazard, Bain, Bolingoli, Urhoghide, Murray, Montgomery, Shaw, Rogic, Henderson, Forrest, Ajeti, Griffiths.

Celtic team likely to face Aberdeen July 31 2022: Hart; Juranovic, Carter-Vickers, Welsh, Taylor; McGregor, Hatate, O’Riley; Jota, Kyogo, Maeda. Subs: Siegrist, Jenz, Bernabei, Turnbull, Abada, Forrest, Giakoumakis