JOHN GUIDETTI fancies a hat-trick in his first Old Firm derby.

Anthony Stokes admits he has had supporters telling him that it will be a bad result should Celtic fail to win by four or five goals.

Alex Rae believes both of them would be better keeping their mouths shut.

The former Rangers midfielder and lifelong supporter of the club believes there have been some rather discourteous words coming out of Parkhead about the challenge they will face from their Ibrox rivals in the semi-finals of the League Cup at Hampden on Sunday.

Of course, Celtic have to be regarded as clear favourites. Whilst doubts remain over the effectiveness of Ronny Deila as coach, they sit top of the SPFL Premiership while Rangers are stuck in second place in the league below with the latest in a long line of off-field meltdowns in progress.

Rae refuses to accept the inevitability of defeat for his side, though. Shocking losses suffered by Chelsea and Manchester City at the hands of Bradford City and Middlesbrough in the FA Cup have given stark reminders of the unpredictability of knock-out competition over the past few days.

The 45-year-old's own experiences of the Old Firm cauldron tell him nothing can be taken for granted either.

"You say there is a gulf between the squads, but Morton beat Celtic on their own patch last season," said Rae.

"Look at the FA Cup at the weekend. It brought shock after shock with the two biggest hitters going out.

"I also think there have been a few disrespectful remarks coming out of Parkhead, saying that if they don't score five it'll be looked upon as a bad result.

"It's quite easy to say things like that. It's quite a cheap shot.

"If that's how they want to conduct the build-up, good luck to them.

"I don't think you need much motivation for an Old Firm game, though. They are special occasions and any player should embrace them."

Rae currently serves as assistant to the former Rangers manager, Alex McLeish, at the Belgian club KRC Genk. They have a home match against KV Oostende in the Jupiler League next Tuesday night and the need to be around to complete preparations has scuppered his plans to return to Glasgow for the Old Firm fixture.

"A friend of mine has taken hospitality and invited me," said Rae. "It's not often you get a freebie for an Old Firm game, so I'm gutted.

"Believe me, I will find it on the box, regardless - even if I have to go up to Amsterdam."

Rae was back in his native city at the weekend to take part in the benefit match for Fernando Ricksen. The Dutchman is coping with the crippling effects of motor neurone disease and the 41,349-strong turn-out in his honour brought tears to the eyes of even the hardest competitors.

Amid the sadness over Ricksen's condition, though, was a pride among many Rangers followers over the way the support came together for one of their own following three years of torture that have created a number of different factions.

Rae hopes the weekend has shown that, whenever the battle for control of the boardroom has been resolved, the fanbase will be capable of rekindling the kind of atmosphere missing from their struggling team's matches of late.

"The club needs to be united like it was for Fernando," said Rae. "It is fragmented at the moment.

"Some people are going to games, some are boycotting, there are obvious boardroom issues.

"For the last three years, everyone has been just looking for some direction and a reason to come back and support the club.

"I've been back sporadically. When I come home, I come to games, so it's still Ibrox and it's still our home. I think you could see that on Sunday.

"It was a terrific occasion, really emotional. I caught myself getting emotional a few times.

"I actually bumped into Fernando a couple of weeks ago at Dusseldorf Airport. He was flying to Russia for medication and we were going to Turkey.

"We ended up telling some war stories and he was asking big Alex if he could get his week's wages back from Toronto, when he got done for late arrival back at the hotel."

Ricksen was carried shoulder high by his former team-mates at the end of the game, won 7-4 by an All-Star Select against a side of Rangers legends, to enjoy the adulation of the crowd.

He also kicked the match off with Ronald de Boer, but his deteriorating condition led him to stumble after touching the ball and fall to the turf.

"It was quite difficult at the kick-off when he fell over and the place fell silent," recalled Michael Mols, who served with Ricksen as a part of Dick Advocaat's Ibrox revolution.

"In his mind, he thinks he can still kick a ball, but he can't find the balance in his muscles. Everyone was shocked.

"At the end, when I was holding him during the lap of honour and we saw the reaction of the crowd and what it meant to him, I could feel his body was so tense. It was really difficult for me to see what this disease has done to his body, but he is a fighter and he will keep fighting.

"It feels like coming home when I go to Ibrox. I am trying to get back over for the game on Sunday.

"Victory could make up for a lot of things and give the supporters their pride back. Most of them are fed up with the situation at the club and I feel the same way."