Celtic Vs Rangers preview: A matter of pride

Morning everyone, it's Old Firm Sunday. This one has really crept up on me. Given the lack of things to play for in the league, and our European achievements, it's understandable that this fixture hasn't had it's usual hype.

There's nothing to play for today, but that doesn't mean there won't be some bite today. We made Celtic look silly in the last Old Firm. They will be keen to get revenge, a win won't be enough for them today, they will want to humiliate us.

That means today is a big test for Barry Ferguson and his management team. What approach will we see? Given the herculean effort from the players on Thursday, I expect to see some tired legs. With that in mind it will likely be a very similar set up.

I would worry about handing Celtic the ball and the initiative like we did to Fenerbahce on Thursday. There were times when we were essentially just getting the ball to Cerny and hoping for the best. We need to be providing numbers on the counter attack, forcing Celtic to think about going the other way. Otherwise it could end up a waiting game for Rangers, we don't want to see that.

I wouldn't be against seeing something like the 433 shape we deployed towards the end of the game against Fenerbahce. It looked a bit disjointed at points so that suggests it's not something we've really worked on in training. But it's the set up that would give us better balance defensively and going forward. Diomande and Raskin get a midfielder with them to share the work load. The front 3 can support each other and provide threat going forward while being able to drop in if the going is really tough. But I expect the management team to err on the side of caution, especially given how tired the team may be.

A few players may get the chance to come in and show what they can do. I'd expect to see Yilmaz in from the start, Propper may have to come in for Balogun given how knackered the Nigerian looked. And I'd also wonder if we may see Danilo start over Dessers, especially after Danilo's anger at Cerny staying on in extra time on Thursday.

Celtic have had a week off since they never need to worry about Europe at this time of year. The home support won't stand for Celtic taking this game easy, not that I think Rodgers would either.

So how do you get on top of the atmosphere? Barry Ferguson knows how to do that as a player, and he's mentioned on more than one occasion this week that Rangers have been "too nice". Obviously as a soundbite that's great, the fans love hearing a manager say that. I want to know how that will work in practice though.

Because all I can see is someone getting a red card in the first half for showing they aren't "too nice". There's such a thing as being fired up too much for a big game. If that translates to really working hard and doing some clever fouls to disrupt momentum, then I'll be very pleased.

After our European excursion and progression, I don't expect much from the game today. But if we go out and show a bit of grit and commitment, most fans will understand. There's also the possibility that the result on Thursday might buoy us onto a better performance like we saw in the cup semi final in 2022.

Hopefully everyone enjoys the game today and stays safe.