Key events
It’s time for Beale to give his thoughts on the game. “It’s a full house, it’s all of our fans as well and they’ll be expecting the team to play on the front foot, to go after Celtic and make it difficult for them,” he tells Rangers TV.
“There’s a lot of changes in both teams in back fours and forward lines, so there’s opportunities for people to step forward in what is a fantastic game, a big game, and show their quality. I’ll be looking for one or two in our team to do that today.”
There’s a whole punditry segment in the Sky Sports studio about Cantwell stopping Reo Hatate having a drink from one of Rangers’ water bottles during the Scottish Cup semi-final. “We’re making a mountain out of a molehill … everything is blown out of proportion in Scotland, there’s no doubt about it,” says Kris Boyd, which seems like the only reasonable take.
Todd Cantwell has been speaking to Sky Sports and the former Norwich youngster has some thoughts on his first few months at Rangers. “A lot of people have obviously said this season’s done and bits and pieces like that, but, for us, it’s not,” he says. “It’s important for the fans that they see what we’re trying to do and get a taster for next season.
“I’d expect [a better Rangers next season]. I think the thing that has really opened my eyes is the intelligence of the manager, the way he wants the game to be played – the way the game should be played.”
The title may be in the bag, but Celtic have their eye on another achievement: if they win their last four games they will end the season on 107 points, breaking their record total, 106, dating back to the 2016-17 campaign under Brendan Rodgers.
Celtic team news
Starting XI: Hart; Ralston, Kobayashi, Starfelt, Bernabei; McGregor, Hatate, O’Riley; Abada, Jota, Oh.
Rangers team news
Starting XI: McCrorie; Tavernier, Goldson, Souttar, Yilmaz; Raskin, Jack; Cantwell, Lundstram, Matondo; Sakala.
Before things get seriously tasty, here’s some Celtic-centric pre-match reading from Ewan Murray on the secrets to Postecoglou’s success.
Preamble
Having wrapped up the Scottish Premiership title with four games to spare, Celtic arrive at Ibrox in a celebratory mood. With the League Cup already in the bag – thanks to a 2-1 win against their bitter rivals back in February – and a Scottish Cup final against Inverness to look forward to, Ange Postecoglou will be confident of claiming his first domestic treble.
That would be made all the more satisfying by another win against Rangers, who have lost four out of five meetings with Postecoglou’s side in all competitions this season. They did manage to secure a 2-2 draw at home in January, however, and the best Michael Beale can hope for at the moment is for his side to turn a few gleeful smiles into glum expressions come the final whistle, with a view to launching a fresh title challenge next term.
