Encounters between Rangers and Hibs are rarely straightforward affairs. Whenever the fixture is approaching, it’s hard for your mind to avoid throwing up prior meetings between the two sides that were frankly bonkers: the 5-5 game a few years ago in the final game of the season (has any other game in the history of the sport had such a last-day-of-school feel to it?) comes to mind, as does the frenetic 2016 Scottish Cup final.
In fact, supporters don’t even have to cast their minds back beyond the beginning of the current campaign to recall a typically helter-skelter encounter between the two clubs. The men from Govan were winning 2-1 before all hell broke loose when first John Lundstram and then Alfredo Morelos were sent off, prompting a late siege from the hosts that produced a last-gasp equaliser from Josh Campbell.
Rangers return to Easter Road this evening and Antonio Colak, for one, is determined to ensure that the game is played on an even keel. With Hibs in good form, they are certain to enjoy a vociferous and healthy backing from the stands but Rangers’ Croatian centre-forward and his team-mates are keen on bringing a little order to the usually chaotic match.
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“It’s a tough game,” he said. “They are a team playing with confidence again and it’s always tough to play at their stadium. But we know that when we play at our level we will outperform them. So we want to take the three points back.
“The last game was a crazy game back then. We had a really good game after the first red card but then we conceded a goal in the last minute to draw 2-2. Now we want to play a new game, to play better and get the three points.
“We don’t want to create any chaos, that’s the thing. We maybe want to bring chaos in the opponent’s half with our game. But over the 90 minutes we want to dominate.
“We don’t just want to do that in either the first or the second half. We want to be really confident about our own game and stick to our plan, the one that the gaffer wants.
“It’s really important for us. We had a really good run until the cup final where we won a lot of games. Now after losing we want to go on another run and keep it going by winning a lot of games. Everything is in our hands if we are winning games.
“So we want to collect as many points as we can and play good football. We are now looking at the table right now, we are just focusing on our game as that’s the most important thing.
“The other teams will try and find a way to hurt us and they will try and bring that chaos we’re talking about. They will try and get the help of their fans to make us nervous and make us not be as confident as we want.
“That’s what happens but I saw our game against Hearts when we dominated the game from the first minute. I know we will have the same work-rate on Wednesday night - and hopefully the same result.”
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Three points for Rangers in Leith are a must if Michael Beale’s side are to have any hope of catching rivals Celtic. The nine-point gap at the cinch Premiership’s summit might well prove too great a chasm for the men from Govan; all they can do is keep collecting points and hope that the champions slip up between now and May.
Every match is essentially must-win for Colak and Co for the remainder of the campaign if they want to keep their title hopes alive and the striker believes a consistent approach – both in terms of the team’s approach on the park and their mindset – will be key.
“Yeah, I mean, it is not only about this game, for me every game is the same,” he added. “In everything and in every game you have to show mentality and character.
“It doesn’t matter if you are playing Raith Rovers in the Cup, or are playing in the league, this has to be the demand when you play for Rangers. Games are no different for me.”
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