Let’s just spare a thought for all the Rangers wives and girlfriends who were forced to do the school run yesterday.
Because believe me, there will have been a few drowsy dads struggling to get their heads off the pillow as the alarm went after Ibrox’s latest Thursday thriller.
Having played in a few of these myself, I can tell you getting to sleep afterwards was always one of the biggest challenges.
As soon as you were back in the changing room after the final whistle, the sport science guys were on you making sure to got food and liquids down your throat to aid your recovery.
But these drinks, things like Lucozade and Red Bull, are full of sugar. Combined with all the adrenaline still pumping round your system, you’d often find yourself getting home, climbing into bed and then staring at the ceiling until 4am.
Some guys I played with would resort to popping sleeping tablets to get some rest. But I was always wary. These tablets can become addictive and leave you reliant upon them any time you want to nod off so it wasn’t for me.
I tried them for a short spell but while they’d knock you out, it wasn’t a proper kip – more of a fake sleep. So you’d still end up groggy in the morning.
Regardless, you can bet there will have been a few tired lads cutting about the training ground yesterday. They will be well looked after at Auchenhowie, though, with everything on hand they need to get themselves going again for Sunday’s huge Old Firm game.
Knowing James Tavernier, he’ll have spent the whole day there going through his full recovery session. It was almost like a spa day for Tav! He’d be in the jacuzzi and the ice bath before getting a rub down.
As for me, I just couldn’t wait to get out of there the day after a big match the night before. There would still be so much emotion floating around the place after occasions like the win over Fenerbahce and I preferred to nip in for a massage then take myself away from it all to rest up at home.
The one thing Rangers can’t afford to do this weekend is be caught napping. Celtic are three games away from clinching another title and will be fired up. While Rangers were going the distance against Jose Mourinho’s Turks, Brendan Rodgers and his team have had a full week to prepare.
I imagine they’ll even have squeed in another video session yesterday after getting a second look at the 5-4-1 system Barry Ferguson used over both legs.
Some people might think the lads will be dreading going up against Brendan Rodgers’ side having had to go through 120 gruelling minutes But for me, it’s the perfect game to come back into.
We all know this Rangers side has sometimes struggled going back to the meat and drink of the Premiership having dined out alongside the European elite in midweek.
That mentality shifty has clearly been difficult for them but tomorrow’s trip to Parkhead is game everybody will be up for.
But I know how difficult it is to bounce from an extra-time shift into a derby battle.
The Rangers team I played for did that when we edged past Braga on the road to Seville a couple of years back, going again three days later to knock Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic out of the Scottish Cup.
I remember our boss Gio van Bronckhorst being so calm in the build up. He was never much for shouting or giving impassioned speeches. He was a tactical coach but Barry has a different approach.
I was on telly duty on Thursday night and when we interviewed him after the game, you could see what it meant to him emotionally.
He’s set about reconnecting the players on the pitch with the fans in the stands – a bond that has looked broken at times this season. But it was back with a bang as he made that jubilant sprint onto the turf to join the wild celebrations after the shoot-out.
I might be talking up Barry’s motivational qualities but don’t think for a minute he doesn’t know how to set a team up.
He deserves huge credit for outfoxing Mourinho in the first leg and it showed that the interim boss, along with his assistants Neil McCann, Billy Dodds and Allan McGregor, were able to come up with a winning game plan.
Fair play to the Special One, he learned his lesson from the game in Istanbul and made sure to double up on Vaclav Cerny and deny him the space he explored so ruthlessly last time.
The Czech ace looked like he was limping near the end and getting him recovered will be vital to Rangers tomorrow.
Tactically, I reckon it will be a copy and paste job from the other night – but perhaps with a slight tweak. Cerny is so effective when he has an outside runner down the flank to drag away defenders but neither Dujon Sterling nor Ridvan Yilmaz are the type to get beyond the winger.
If it was me, I’d swap Sterling and Tavernier round and put the captain back to his natural slot on the wing where he can forward and support Cerny because the 2400 Rangers fans heading back to Parkhead will demand their team has a go at Celtic.
Some people are talking up Barry’s prospects of getting the job full-time if he can topple Rodgers like he did with Jose.
I’m not sure. I suspect the club’s in-coming American owners will looking for a big-name appointment but I think he’s shown he should be kept on in some capacity.
For me, it’s vital to have someone who understands the club’s DNA and what it means to the fans on the coaching staff.
But I can also see why Barry might find it difficult to step back into the shadows having been the man in the spotlight, leading the club to a famous win and setting up a huge quarter-final clash with Athletic Bilbao next month.
Whatever happens at the end of the season, he can sleep easy knowing he’s done a fine job.