Celtic v Hearts: Does the quadruple treble still matter to Neil Lennon's side?

Winning the 2019-20 Scottish Cup would complete the quadruple treble for Celtic

After the tumult of recent months, history beckons for Celtic at Hampden on Sunday.

The quadruple treble - a 12th consecutive domestic trophy - is the unprecedented prize at stake for Neil Lennon's men when they face Heart of Midlothian in last season's delayed Scottish Cup final.

But, with the club beset by problems in a season dominated by their faltering pursuit of a 10th league title in succession, does the quadruple treble still matter?

Trying to calm a crisis

Celtic's collapse from a position of strength has been swift and staggering. This was the club that had swept all before them for four years, winning every domestic trophy under Brendan Rodgers and latterly Lennon.

Even the final months of last term - 12 victories in a 14-game unbeaten domestic run - gave little hint of the meltdown to come.

Despite unconvincing performances, it was business as usual early this season with 25 points from 27 collected in the Premiership, while the Champions League qualifying loss to Ferencvaros was a bitter setback but not uncommon.

Then the wheels came off when Rangers embarrassed Lennon's team in a one-sided contest. It triggered a run of two wins in 12 that brought civil war to Celtic Park. Protests, incendiary banners and vociferous calls for change at management and boardroom level fuelled the sense of crisis.

Lennon looked doomed. Yet the board has stuck steadfastly with their man - giving him until the new year to improve fortunes - and a revival or sorts has begun.

Celtic have strung together back-to-back wins - over Lille and Kilmarnock - for the first time since early October. So, would completing the quadruple treble mark another crucial step on the road to recovery, or simply paper over the cracks?

Former Celtic defender Gary Caldwell puts Celtic's slump partly down to the absence of fans and says the players' brittle belief could do with restorative effect of Hampden glory.

"They are missing their supporters," he says. "Celtic Park, when it's full, is like a 12th man.

"Celtic have been playing with the handbrake on and looking a bit scared about taking the initiative. The players need support. They need an arm round them and cajoling rather than being shouted at.

"You struggle with a bit of form and your confidence dips. You can see signs of it coming back in the last two games. Everyone is improving - slowly - and that will continue if they keep winning games."

Old Firm defeat by Rangers in October signalled the start of Celtic's slump

Shadow of the 10

This season was always all about "the 10" for Celtic. The quadruple treble was supposed to be a precursor to the greater glory that has been occupying fans' minds for years.

But the fabled target of a record 10th consecutive title has become more distant with Celtic 13 points behind Rangers having played two games fewer. Even if they win their next two Premiership games, that gap could be 19 if Lennon's men lose the Old Firm derby on 2 January.

What's clear is Lennon needs to keep the wins coming. So the stakes are raised for Sunday's final as they seek to go back in time to last season to ease their troubles of this term.

You would be hard pressed to find a Celtic supporter who would take cup final victory on Sunday over 10 in a row. And former Celtic manager Martin O'Neill says the importance of the quadruple treble has "absolutely" been diminished.

O'Neill, who delivered the treble in 2001 among his seven trophies at Celtic Park, said: "Ten in a row is exactly what it's all about this year.

"It is the main focus for Celtic, simple as that. Every point that Celtic drop, you'll have someone criticising the result or the performance."

'It would mean so much to the players'

Lennon, understandably, is unequivocal about the quadruple treble's importance to himself and his squad.

To put it into some sort of context, no Scottish team had completed back-to-back trebles until Celtic's current run. The most consecutive domestic trophies won was seven, achieved by Rangers from 1992-94, before their Glasgow rivals blew that benchmark away.

And, in reaching Sunday's final, Celtic extended their British football benchmark to 35 successive wins in cup ties with victory over Aberdeen.

Much like Celtic's confidence, that run has since been shattered. Ross County's 2-0 victory in the League Cup second round last month ended their stranglehold on domestic silverware.

Now they start from scratch with silverware on offer and Lennon said: "It's unprecedented. You're talking about trying to win a fourth treble in consecutive seasons. That's monumental.

"And I think it would mean so much to the players. From my own personal point of view, it would mean a hell of a lot.

"I don't think we'll ever see the likes of it again. So it's one to look forward to and I think the players are very much motivated by it."