The Old Firm match is coming at Kenny Miller with the speed of an express train. The whistles, however, will be louder.

The Old Firm match is coming at Kenny Miller with the speed of an express train. The whistles, however, will be louder.

Miller will almost certainly booed by elements among both sets of fans at Celtic Park on Sunday but Billy Davies insisted yesterday that the striker had the character to ignore the tumult. "He will be looking forward to it. He will know what to expect. He has handled it before when he has had criticism throughout his career," said Davies, who might be termed as a friendly witness. The former Derby County manager paid £2m for Miller but realises the striker has a difficult task in converting some members of the Ibrox support.

"He will have worked out the hassles, the problems, the difficulties of going back to Rangers," said Davies. "I don't think he has come back naively, not knowing that when you kiss the badge of Celtic Football Club and then you join Rangers . . . well, it is a no brainer. There will be certain sections that will keep that in their minds."

However, Davies believes Miller has traits that will help him survive in the most hostile of environments. "He is a strong character, a player who works very hard, a great lad in the dressing room with strong opinions," he said. "He will ignore all that is going on around him and concentrate on helping Rangers win. If there's any way of putting the fans on your side, it's by scoring the winner against Celtic."

Davies, who was speaking to promote Setanta's exclusive live coverage of the Old Firm match, bought Miller because he believed the striker would be suited by Derby County's plans to play a 4-5-1 formation. The manager, who left Derby in a row over the lack of funds to improve a side that faced a testing first season in the premier league, admitted that he didn't like playing with a lone striker but that "needs must" when the schedule includes visits to such as Liverpool and Arsenal.

Miller, he said, had a great work ethic and the ability "to hunt defenders down" and keep his own team-mates on their toes.

"He moans in training when his shooting is not right or when people don't cross the ball into the box properly.

He moans in games. He moans at half-time. He just moans. I have no problem whatosever with that. He is a strong character and he is experienced. He likes to dish it out, but he can take it," said Davies.

The former Rangers midfielder also gave a glowing testimonial to the latest player to take up that role at Ibrox. Pedro Mendes, he said, had "an excellent range of passing:" and has "that little bit of guile, that little bit of graft". The signing from Portsmouth, he said, had the experience to withstand the rigours of an Old Firm match but said Madjid Bougherra, the central defender bought from Charlton Athletic, could face a severe test.

"He is strong and has good pace," said Davies of the £2.5m signing. However, he added: "This is a big test for him in terms of the different type of game he will have to handle in Scotland."

Davies said the game in Scotland was played much more to the feet than in England and Bougherra could find it tricky against such as Scott McDonald, if fit, or Shaun Maloney.

This, though, was speculation but Davies did pinpoint one certainty about the Old Firm match. "It will not pass without controversy. It is the nature of this game," he said.

This, he asserted, put further pressure on referees. Davies insisted referees in Scotland were no worse than those in England and said that they had to be allowed to make use of "common sense" without worrying about repercussions from assessors in the stands.

Davies has spent his time travelling with his family in America and in Europe since his departure from Derby in November last year. He has used this as a holiday and an opportunity to view foreign training sessions and speak to managers. He is determined to return to the game. "The hunting season for managers is September, October and November. Without doubt, you will see heads roll. It is the nature of the business," he said.

"Unless something exceptional comes up in Scotland or abroad, it is my clear intention to go back down south again because I feel I have unfinished business in the premier league," he said. His focus, then, is on England, though events at Celtic Park on Sunday will merit more than a passsing glance.