AHEAD of Sunday’s eagerly-anticipated Old Firm, fans of the two rival clubs will be desperate to see their side emerge victorious from the famous derby. A win for Celtic would all but confirm the title and make the case for giving interim boss Neil Lennon the job on a permanent basis only stronger, while Rangers supporters will be hoping to leave Celtic Park with all three points for the first time in years.
Games like this are often decided by narrow margins and it’s up to each player on the pitch to make sure he gets the better of his opposite number. Below, we’ve taken a look at some of the key battles that will take place on the Celtic Park pitch in a bid to identify where the derby will be won and lost.
Scott Brown v Ryan Jack
READ MORE: Steven Gerrard: Rangers have made progress this season - regardless of the Premiership gap to Celtic
Getting a foothold in the middle of the park is vital for both sides and if one team can get the upper hand in this area of the pitch then they will likely go on to win the game. Ryan Jack and Scott Brown play in similar roles for their respective clubs and it will be fascinating to watch the pair go head-to-head in Sunday’s game.
Both Rangers and Celtic rely on their central midfielders to distribute the ball around the pitch when in possession and win it back from the opposition when they lose the ball. When Brown struggles, Celtic often do as well and the same can be said of Jack for Rangers. The duo are extremely important for their respective clubs and with the pair facing off directly against each other, this will undoubtedly be an area of the pitch to keep a close eye on.
Jack won the previous encounter at Ibrox when the two sides last met and the Celtic captain will no doubt be out for revenge. Brown’s form has noticeably improved since Rangers’ 1-0 win at Ibrox, where the 33-year-old was somewhat off the pace. Brown will surely be determined to prove that he still has what it takes to compete and if he can get the better of Jack, then Celtic will surely be in the driving seat.
Ryan Kent v Mikael Lustig
READ MORE: Listen: Which manager needs an Old Firm win the most?
Ryan Kent has been one of the breakout stars of this season’s Premiership and the on-loan winger has proven to be one of Rangers’ greatest attacking threats. During the 1-0 win over Celtic at Ibrox, the winger was one of Rangers’ best players and looked dangerous whenever he drove at the Celtic defence.
Mikael Lustig started at right back for Celtic that day but didn’t convince before being hauled off at half-time. The Swedish internationalist has on occasion looked vulnerable when facing a direct, pacy winger like Kent and this is certainly an area of the park where Rangers can hurt Celtic.
If Lustig can keep Kent quiet, however, then Rangers’ chances of winning will be dealt a significant blow. It’s likely that Steven Gerrard will instruct his players to play on the counter and without the pacy breakaways that Kent offers his side, the visitors could struggle to catch Celtic on the break.
Odsonne Edouard v Connor Goldson
READ MORE: Our writers give their predictions ahead of Sunday's Old Firm
Celtic’s record signing has spent a fair amount of time out of the first team this season as he has struggled with injury but managed the full 90 minutes in Celtic’s last match, a 1-0 win at Dens Park. A fully-fit Odsonne Edouard would worry any defence in the league and the Frenchman has been a match-winner in the derby before.
Keeping Edouard quiet will be a job for the entire Rangers defence but it’s likely that Connor Goldson will be primarily responsible for restricting opportunities for the Celtic striker. Goldson has been inconsistent this season but if he plays to his full potential then he is certainly capable of stopping Edouard.
The French forward is the bookies’ favourite to open the scoring on Sunday and if Edouard is on form, then the Rangers defenders will need to be at their very best to stop him.
Andy Halliday v James Forrest
Andy Halliday has performed admirably since moving to left back in Gerrard’s side but Sunday’s fixture will be the biggest test he has faced in this new position yet. James Forrest has been one of the Premiership’s best players this season and will undoubtedly drive repeatedly at the Rangers left back.
With Borna Barisic ruled out through injury, Gerrard will likely turn to Halliday to slot in on the left side of defence. The natural midfielder will need to be at his best to come out on top against Forrest but as a boyhood Rangers fan will not be short of motivation to do so.
If Forrest plays to his full potential then one would imagine that Halliday could be in for a difficult shift on Sunday. But as Scotland fans will have noticed during last week’s 3-0 defeat to Kazakhstan, the Celtic winger can be nullified and marked out of the game by an organised defence.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel