Four miles is all that separates Celtic Park in the East End of Glasgow and Ibrox in Govan. It is impossible to avoid the spectre of Celtic and Rangers in Scotland’s biggest city, but the two rivals have been kept apart in the Scottish Premiership table for the last 13 years. Indeed, the 2010/11 season was the last time Scotland witnessed a genuine title race.
By Graham Ruthven
Back then, one point was all that divided the pair and there’s a growing sense this season’s title race could be decided by a margin just as narrow. Celtic have a one-point advantage at the top of the Scottish Premiership while Rangers hold a game in-hand. The situation, however, could change after this weekend’s Old Firm derby.
Sunday’s match at Ibrox promises to be the most meaningful league meeting between Celtic and Rangers in over a decade. The stakes couldn’t be any higher. No trophies will be handed out at full time, but the outcome of this derby could have a big bearing on the tightest Scottish title race in recent memory.
Celtic are the defending champions and table-toppers, but this season has been a slog for Brendan Rodgers’ team. The drop-off from Ange Postecoglou has been stark with the Hoops frequently lethargic in a number of their performances. Rodgers himself has reflected this with the Northern Irishman a seemingly detached and disinterested figure at points.
More recently, though, Celtic have started to find their best form again. Cameron Carter-Vickers and Reo Hatate have returned from injury to steady the side. Callum McGregor is also expected to be fit enough to start Sunday’s match at Ibrox after a period on the sidelines which saw him miss out for Scotland in last month’s international window.
Rodgers has finally grasped how to utilise Kyogo Furuhashi to the best of the Japanese forward’s elite level abilities. Previously, Furuhashi was being asked to drop deep and link the play. Now, Rodgers is asking him to make runs behind the opposition defence and find good positions to finish opportunities. This is how Postecoglou used him.
Nicolas Kühn is starting to find his feet as a Celtic player after signing in January while Adam Idah has given Rodgers the attacking focal point he lacked in the first half of the season. It has taken longer than perhaps it should have, but Rodgers is finally getting to grips with the characteristics of his squad.
Under Philippe Clement, Rangers have been the more consistent of the two teams. Indeed, the Belgian has lost just two of the 20 Scottish Premiership matches he has taken charge of since his arrival at Ibrox in October. One of those defeats, however, came against Celtic in Clement’s only Old Firm derby to date.
Few expected Clement to turn around an ailing Rangers team so quickly. Under Michael Beale, the Ibrox outfit lacked direction. Many supporters believed they lacked talent after a less-than-convincing summer transfer window. Clement, however, has managed to get a tune out of the players he inherited, none more so than Cyriel Dessers.
After an underwhelming start to life in Scotland, Dessers now has 17 goals to his name (13 in the league). The Nigerian is still more wasteful than many supporters would like, but Rangers have finally activated Dessers’ finishing instincts. His goals could be key in pushing Rangers over the line in the title race.
John Lundstram has also enjoyed a resurgence in form under Clement while the January additions of Mohamed Diomande and Fabio Silva have given Rangers a different dimension. Colombian winger Oscar Cortes also made an immediate impact before suffering an injury that could sideline him until the end of the season.
This final two months of the Scottish Premiership campaign promises to be so compelling because Celtic and Rangers are both flawed. No matter what happens at Ibrox on Sunday, there will be twists and turns before the end of May just as there has been over the course of the season so far.
Nonetheless, Sunday’s derby will be a spectacle unlike anything else seen in Scottish football for a long time. It will be thrilling for the neutral – and nerve-wracking for anyone associated with Celtic or Rangers. Old Firm derbies always matter, but this weekend’s could matter that little bit more.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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