Speaking exclusively to Celtic TV, he said: “I’ve not had too much time to reflect because when the games stopped we had work to do to get the new players in and plan for the next six months and beyond.

“I think from my perspective, what I’ve seen is progress in the first six months and that’s the most important thing.

“I think we’re moving in the right direction. There are still many areas we need to improve, but overall I think from where we started we are in a decent position.

'We showed the kind of football we want to play and the kind of football team we want to be, we just want to do that on a more consistent basis and at a better level than before.'

“If we do that, I think with what is coming up, it gives us more of a chance for success which is always the aim.”

As football in 2021 came to an earlier halt than initially planned, the break provided an opportunity for players to enjoy the festive period and recover from knocks that were picked up during a hectic schedule.

With the team back at training this week, refreshed from their time off, it also saw a welcome return for Christopher Jullien, who missed the whole of 2021 through injury.

With the Frenchman now back among the group, the manager is hoping he and the others in the treatment room will be available in the weeks to come, with the first game against Hibernian just nine days away.

“Chris has worked awfully hard,” he said. “It’s always difficult with those long terms ones because there’s no real end date.

'He’s training well and over the next couple of weeks we’ll get him involved in playing and hopefully he hits the ground running and can help us in our cause.'

“All the other guys are at different stages of recovery but they’re doing well.

“We expect the majority to be available when the season restarts, which will be great because we will hopefully have the depth to cope with what will be a very busy period for us.”

Ange Postecoglou: We want to be at an even better level for the second part of the season