Celtic vs Rangers: High Stakes Clash in Scottish Premiership
Celtic and Rangers collide again in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday, with the champions walking into the storm rather than away from it.
A 3-0 humbling by Rangers in the Premier Sports Cup quarter-finals at Ibrox last weekend, followed by a 3-1 Europa League defeat to Ferencvaros, has turned the volume up around Martin O'Neill and his squad. The questions have come quickly. The response has to come even quicker.
And yet, in the middle of all that noise, the table offers Celtic a strange kind of opportunity: win, and they move eight points clear of their greatest rivals. Lose a third game in a row, and Rangers close to within two.
O'Neill under pressure, but defiant
The pressure on O'Neill is obvious. The tone from the manager, though, is anything but resigned.
"We're ready to go, we really are," he said. "We're getting prepared for the game. It was a difficult game last Sunday and difficult last night, but we're ready to go.
"Confidence, we're far from rock-bottom. We're still in the lead in the league. If we can win this, we can extend the lead. If we don't, going into the international break, we're still going to be in front."
That last line underlines the reality: this is not a crisis of standings, it is a crisis of momentum and mood. Three defeats on the spin, especially with two of them coming against Rangers and in Europe, would feel far heavier than the table suggests.
"It's not the thing that you would look forward to going into an international break on three successive defeats, if that's the case," O'Neill admitted. "We've got to be a bit more inventive but the crowd will be up for this. The players are capable of turning it around."
Inventive is the key word. Celtic have looked blunt when it mattered most over the last week, and the spotlight has fallen sharply on those who were brought in to sharpen them.
New signings challenged to rise to the occasion
The Ibrox defeat raised doubts about whether some of the recent arrivals truly understood the scale and ferocity of this fixture. Several struggled to impose themselves when the game raged at its highest temperature.
"It will probably take a little bit more time, but I think anybody who experienced last Sunday, to know what it's all about, it shouldn't need many more lessons," O'Neill said.
There is no soft landing in this rivalry. You either learn fast or get left behind.
Team selection may again be influenced by fitness issues. O'Neill confirmed that one or two players who came off during the Ferencvaros defeat will need to be assessed before Sunday.
Yang Hyun-Jun remains away on international duty with South Korea, adding another complication in attack. O'Neill was non-committal on whether he might tweak his system to pair Kasper Hogh and Camilo Duran up front, a move that would signal a more aggressive approach in search of goals and a statement.
Alistair Johnston and Callum Osmand are still sidelined with injury, limiting the manager’s options in key areas.
Rangers carry injuries – and a grievance
Rangers arrive with confidence after their cup win, but not without their own problems.
Striker Ryan Naderi is a major doubt after suffering an ankle injury in that 3-0 victory, the result of a challenge from Mika Baur. The incident has not been allowed to fade quietly. Rangers have contacted Scottish FA head of refereeing Willie Collum to question why no further punishment followed.
One unnamed player is also a doubt for the visitors, adding another layer of uncertainty to Philippe Clement’s planning. There is at least some good news: left-back Tuur Roomens has returned to training after injury and could come back into contention.
So the stage is set: a Celtic side stung, scrutinised and still top; a Rangers team sensing vulnerability and smelling blood. One fixture, and two very different futures for this title race could emerge by Sunday night.
