Celtic could be crowned champions on April 5 after moving 17 points clear of Hearts at the top of the Bank of Scotland Premier League with a 2-1 victory over Inverness at Parkhead tonight.
The CIS Insurance Cup winners might have been accused of overdoing the Hampden Park celebrations after a flat performance.
But Stephen McManus scored his eighth goal of the season, and in-form Shaun Maloney curled home another trademark free-kick to move the Glasgow giants within touching distance of the title.
Celtic require eight points from as many games to guarantee the return of the trophy. But wins at Livingston on Sunday and against troubled second-placed side Hearts at Parkhead would wrap up the silverware early.
Inverness, who scored a late consolation through Richard Hart from Artur Boruc's blunder, remain a point behind sixth-placed Aberdeen with three games to go before the split.
Celtic manager Gordon Strachan made two changes after Sunday's win over Dunfermline, suspended John Hartson and cup-tied Mark Wilson coming in for injured Roy Keane and unlucky Ross Wallace.
Celtic again paid tribute to Jimmy Johnstone before kick-off as his wife Agnes and the Lisbon Lions took the CIS Insurance Cup and European Cup out on to the pitch before an emotional minute's applause.
The home side promised much early on and carved out a great opening for the in-form Maciej Zurawski after two minutes.
Hartson received Shunsuke Nakamura's pass and sent the Pole into space. But the forward failed to find the power and pace to give Mark Brown too much of a problem from the edge of the area.
Bobo Balde lost his concentration in the sixth minute and allowed Graham Bayne to get behind the Celtic defence - but the striker headed over from just six yards to let the defender off the hook.
Neil Lennon almost gave Celtic the lead with an audacious chip in the 15th minute.
Paul Telfer launched a long throw, but Richard Hart made a mess of his clearance and managed to find the midfielder inside the box. The captain saw Brown off his line and watched his effort go just wide.
Nakamura had a glorious opportunity to break the deadlock in the 22nd minute after a superb ball from Zurawski.
His reverse pass put the Japanese star clean through, but Brown brilliantly steered his shot behind.
Stilian Petrov, back in midfield with Keane out, signalled to the bench in the 26th minute that all was not well - and he lasted only two more minutes before being replaced by Stephen Pearson.
Celtic needed some inspiration, and Wilson almost provided it in the 32nd minute.
The full-back got forward and curled a dangerous cross into the goalmouth. But Richard Hastings saved the Highlands outfit by heading the ball over the bar, with Hartson waiting to pounce.
McManus emerged Celtic's unlikely hero in the 36th minute from a Nakamura corner.
He was nine yards out but still sent his looping header over Brown and into the back of the net.
Hartson should have wrapped up the points in the 50th minute but instead wasted the best chance of the match.
Wilson turned the Inverness defence inside out before pulling his cross to the near post where the Welshman was loitering yet somehow fired the ball wide of the upright from four yards.
The game tightened up again. But Ian Black let Pearson know he was around with a two-footed lunge at the former Motherwell man which earned him the first booking of the match.
That sparked Inverness' best spell of the game - and McCaffrey should have kept his header, from Alan Morgan's corner, under the bar.
Strachan tried to inject some life into his side by bringing on weekend goalscorer Dion Dublin on for the disappointing Hartson.
But Maloney curled another stunning free-kick past a rooted Brown from the edge of the area in the 79th minute to secure another important three points for the champions elect.
Dublin could have had another goal for the collector's album late on but saw his effort come back off the post.
There was still time, however, for Boruc to suffer a major embarrassment when he let a long-range Hart effort slip under his body to gift Inverness a goal.
