The second Old Firm match of the season kicks off on Wednesday night, and as always, the stakes are high. When Rangers beat Celtic 4-2 in the first match of the season, it put Rangers in control in the SPL. Celtic were struggling and Rangers were unbeaten. But things have changed dramatically in the last 10 games, and a win for Celtic would put them back on top of the SPL table.
I’ve written before about the potential for trouble around this game. An evening kick-off during the holiday period seems madness, particularly after the last Old Firm evening match resulted in the SNP and police holding a summit to discuss how better to control matches between Rangers and Celtic. With the title race now so delicately poised, tempers may flare easily on and off the pitch. Time will tell, but until then, here’s a look at both teams as they approach this vital game.
When Celtic travelled to Fir Park to play Motherwell on November 6th, they were struggling badly in the SPL. Rangers had won the day before and had stretched their lead over Celtic to a massive 15 points. Celtic did have two games in hand, the game they were about to play, and a home game against Dunfermline scheduled for later in the month. They were also behind Motherwell in the SPL, and a home win would have opened up a 6 point gap between the two, leaving Celtic’s title hopes in tatters. Motherwell took the lead in the 11th minute of the game, but Celtic equalised three minutes later. The home team defended doggedly, but Celtic took the lead in the 80th minute, and held on for a vital win.
It was a result that changed their season. When they beat Kilmarnock on Saturday, it was their 8th straight league win, and it reduced the gap to Rangers to just a single point. And now they are set to face Rangers at home with a chance to reclaim top spot in the league.
It’s a remarkable turnaround for Neil Lennon’s team, an impressive run of form when you look at their long list of injuries over the season. Lennon has rarely been able to pick from his full squad, but the team have recovered from a poor start to the season and hauled themselves back into the title race. With Rangers form stuttering badly, they will go into the game as favourites, and a win will see them start the year in 1st place.
After a poor start to the season which included an opening day draw at home to Hearts and being knocked out of both European competitions, Ally McCoist’s side rallied to enjoy an unbeaten start to the SPL season and opened up a 15 point gap between themselves and their Old Firm rivals. At that point, Celtic still had two games in hand, but now the gap is down to a single point, after Rangers dropped 10 points in their last 10 games, including Saturday’s defeat against St. Mirren. In that game, Rangers were reduced to 9 men for the second time this season (the first was the defeat in Malmo in the Champions League), and lost the opportunity to ensure that they would start 2012 in 1st place regardless of the score at Parkhead.
McCoist has often baffled Rangers supporters with his team selections, with recent games featuring leftback Sasa Papac starting in midfield, and another leftback, Lee Wallace, starting in left midfield. A serious knee injury that ended Steven Naismith’s season has been a hammer blow for the team and losing his energy and creativity has sapped the team of flair, despite the recent signing of Sone Aluko. Nikica Jelavic hasn’t recaptured his spectacular form of last season, although he is still the SPL’s top goalscorer.
Ally McCoist is an inexperienced manager, and if Rangers start to fall behind Celtic, the patience of the support will be sorely tested. A win in this game will ease pressure on McCoist, but a defeat will give him an uncomfortable start to 2012.
For more blogs, follow me on Twitter @TheGlassCase or @DavidWDougan
Introducing the neat little app that’ll pay you to view content tailored to your interests:
ThisisFutbol.com are seeking new writers to join the team! If you’re passionate about football, drop us a line at “thisisfutbol.com@snack-media.com” to learn more.