ANOTHER week, another clean sheet and another win. There has been a familiar routine about this season for Rangers, but victory over Celtic was more significant than many that Steven Gerrard’s side have achieved this season.
An acrobatic effort from Steven Davis and Jonjoe Kenny’s own goal moved the champions a step closer to a Premiership and Scottish Cup double.
St Johnstone now lie in wait twice this week as Rangers bid for an unbeaten league campaign and a place at Hampden.
Celtic are condemned to finish the season without any silverware but Rangers now have the chance to emphasise their superiority in Scottish football in the next month.
Over the course of 90 minutes at Ibrox, they would do just that in an Old Firm sense. Here are five talking points from that Scottish Cup win.
RANGERS ARE THE BEST TEAM IN SCOTLAND
That fact has never been in doubt this season and shouldn’t really have been questioned ahead of the Old Firm fixture but comments from John Kennedy sparked a debate.
Borna Barisic criticised Kennedy for being ‘disrespectful’ towards Rangers but there was no real harm in what the interim Parkhead manager was saying as he attempted to give his side a much-needed boost last week.
An own goal doubles Rangers' lead! 🔵
— Watch Rangers v Celtic live on Premier Sports 📺 (@PremierSportsTV) April 18, 2021
A great team move, a good run by Kent, and Jonjoe Kenny ends up turning it into his own net under pressure
"Not content with the league title, Rangers are revelling in this" 🗣#ScottishCup #RANCEL pic.twitter.com/km8LG5xlQ6
On their day, Celtic can be a decent side. This wasn’t their afternoon, though, and Rangers would once again prove their supremacy with a controlled display that was rightly rewarded with a comfortable passage into the quarter-finals.
Rangers have the upper-hand technically, tactically and mentally over Celtic right now and the Premiership table – with a 20 point gap at the top - tells its own story of where the teams are at present.
The whole argument is something of a storm in a teacup. Rangers have led from the front throughout the season and this win merely undermined their excellence.
NO OLD FIRM FEAR FACTOR FOR CHAMPIONS
Gerrard spoke post-match on Sunday about a shift in mentality from Rangers going into these fixtures now and of the belief and confidence that his side can approach Celtic clashes with.
This is now three wins out of four in the Old Firms this season and Rangers are unbeaten in their last five games with their greatest rivals and their nearest challengers. It is a record that sums up the shift of power across Glasgow.
READ MORE: ‘Glasgow is blue’: Rangers deliver triumphant message after Old Firm win
Before Gerrard’s arrival, these games were ominous prospects for Rangers. The defeats were embarrassing and the fixtures themselves almost a no-contest as Celtic outclassed and outplayed hugely inferior opposition.
That is no longer the case. Rangers will lose derbies under Gerrard but they need not fear them and there is no impending dread of a heavy humiliation in the build-up these days.
In Gerrard’s first two seasons, Rangers had to be at their best to beat Celtic. Now they are earning results when not hitting their peak and the dynamic of the Old Firm fixture has swung very much in their favour.
MAN OF THE MATCH WAS A TRICKY CALL
The performance of the collective is always more important and more defining than those of the individuals but both factors contributed to this significant cup success at Ibrox.
Allan McGregor would collect the Man of the Match award after a string of impressive saves and the brilliant stop from Odsonne Edouard’s penalty.
It was another big game performance from one of Gerrard’s stalwarts but there were a handful who staked their claim for the prize and that summed up Rangers’ day.
Odsonne Édouard's penalty is saved by Allan McGregor! 😱
— Watch Rangers v Celtic live on Premier Sports 📺 (@PremierSportsTV) April 18, 2021
A massive stop from Rangers' keeper and a big blow to Celtic's chances of a comeback 🖐#ScottishCup #RANCEL pic.twitter.com/z6cGDrOJXS
Nathan Patterson was excellent, Steven Davis sublime and Joe Aribo produced the kind of showing that has been a long time coming in the Old Firm fixture.
The strike from Davis was a touch of class and he would stroll through the game but Aribo’s influence cannot be understated and he had a hand in both goals.
It is hard to argue strongly against McGregor getting the nod but the fact that the decision was as difficult was a source of real satisfaction for Rangers.
NATHAN PATTERSON HAS TO BE PICKED FOR SCOTLAND
There will be many who could have made a strong case for Patterson to collect the award but the victory and the praise from Gerrard will mean far more to the right-back.
The rise and rise of the 19-year-old has been remarkable and the journey should take him all the way to the European Championships with Scotland this summer.
READ MORE: Steven Gerrard's best right-back claim over Rangers star Nathan Patterson
Gerrard was clear that there wasn’t a better Scottish right-back in the league as he spoke about Patterson post-match and the Ibrox kid now cannot be overlooked by Steve Clarke.
He is composed on the ball, his defensive capabilities are improving all the time and he is very much a modern day full-back as he drives forward and impacts the game in the final third.
Patterson will become a stalwart for club and country in the coming years. It would be folly not to give him his first taste of tournament action this summer and let him take another stride forward at the end of a memorable campaign.
DOUBLE VERY MUCH ON THE CARDS FOR GERRARD
The trip to McDiarmid Park is important in its own right for Rangers as they look to move within three fixtures of an unbeaten Premiership campaign.
What a way that would be to mark their 55th league title this term.
READ MORE: Steven Gerrard details key mentality characteristics that have silenced Rangers' critics
It is silverware that is the ultimate aim for Gerrard and his players, though, and the second meeting with St Johnstone this week is therefore the bigger of the two fixtures.
Steven Davis with the acrobatics! 😱
— Premier Sports 📺 (@PremierSportsTV) April 18, 2021
An incredible finish and a fantastic start for @RangersFC! 🔵#ScottishCup #RANCEL pic.twitter.com/ILbK0Z6cHv
Rangers, of course, will want to win both and that ambition shouldn’t be beyond them but the team selections from Gerrard and Callum Davidson will be interesting in midweek.
This season will always be historic given that the Premiership was won but it would end on a sour note if Rangers couldn’t add the Scottish Cup to their tally for the first time since 2009.
Given their dominance domestically, it would be a real disappointment if they only had one medal to show for their efforts and there is no reason why Gerrard’s side shouldn’t have a double celebration come the end of May.
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