My graphic description of Celtic and Rangers causes offence as a phone call from Chicago arrives – Hugh Keevins

Let’s just say Celtic and Rangers are moderately-talented football teams and leave it at that.

Describing them more graphically as a couple of bang-average sides can, as I have discovered, give rise to offence. One radio caller told me it was my duty to dispense with such intemperate language and dedicate myself to talking up Scottish football. No, it’s not. My responsibility is to offer an opinion that, depending on the circumstances, can be negative or positive.

And here’s one based on the fact that, whether they are moderate or magnificent, the Old Firm will meet on Saturday to stage the biggest derby for a generation. The strain on both sets of players will be so great it is actually possible to feel a modicum of sympathy for them. They will be part of a television spectacle which will attract a record number of viewers – even greater than the audience of 1.4 million people who tuned in for the epic three-all draw at Ibrox the last time the clubs met. A confrontation which could, if Celtic win, all but guarantee Brendan Rodgers’ side becoming league champions.

There will be no Rangers fans inside Celtic Park, other than those who are employed by the club, but a celebration on a gargantuan scale would await them somewhere if Philippe Clement’s side defeated Celtic for the first time this season. A result that would throw the subject of who will be the eventual title winners out into the public arena for debate once again.

In short, the quality of the two sides might be a matter for conjecture – but the scale of the drama about to unfold is, without any argument, off the charts. A country will temporarily come to a halt and the global audience, for what is supposed to be a localised conflict, will be monumental.