Rangers v Celtic: Scottish Premiership – live | Scottish Premiership
Key events
45 min We’ll have two added minutes.
45 min And here come Celtic again, Hatate running off Diomande, and though his shooting lane is immediately closed down, the ball ballooning off to safety, he’s regularly finding space where Rangers two defensive midfielders are meant to be.
44 min So far, this match has told us what we thought we knew: Rangers are good enough to beat everyone bar Celtic, while Celtic are good enough to do whatever they need to do to win the title.
43 min Rangers win a corner down the right and Tavernier swings it on top of Hart, who gets it behind for another; this time, Carter-Vickers heads clear. He and Scales have been pretty solid so far.
41 min O’Reilly goes to ground to challenge Diomande, catching the soft, fleshy part of his thigh; in our playground, that was known as a donkey bite, its highest iteration below. He’s booked.
41 mon Tavernier misplaces a pass and O’Reilly, who’s been excellent, intercepts and shoves Kyogo away. But with a man blocking off the inside, he drives outside and lashes a shot that’s blocked at source.
39 min Fabio Silva is not enjoying this; down on the ground writhing after Johnston aborts his off-the-ball run with a good, honest, old-fashioned, British bodycheck. He’s booked, and Silva is most upset.
38 min Johnston slides a terrific pass in front of Kuhn, nashing down the right, and with Kyogo loitering, Butland, on the dive, collects at the second attempt. Rangers are rocking and Celtic might just be able to finish this before half-time.
36 min Rangers have no real ground for complaint. They dominated territory after the goal but without creating anything, and the best chances have all been Celtic’s but excuse me while I interrupt myself! Taylor crosses superbly from the left and Kyoto races towards the far post to catch up with it … but when he should go far post he goes near, heading wide.
GOAL! Rangers 0-2 Celtic (O’Reilly pen 34)
It was coming, but the stones on Matt O’Reilly, goodness me! He waits for Butland to dive, clips the ball over the keeper, and yet more spooky silence. Celtic take a giant step towards retaining their title!
PENALTY TO CELTIC!
33 min Goldson’s elbow caught the ball, away from his body, and a quick look at the screen was enough for the ref to see it’s a penalty.
31 min In comes the corner, Maeda with the flick, and does that hit Goldson’s arm? VAR will want a look….
31 min Lovely from Maeda, dashing at the Rangers defence, chucking in a Zidane spin when he looks to have overrun the ball, and when h finds Johnston, O’Reilly meets it the cross with a booming header … that Butland tips behind! Fine save!
29 min Yup, Celtic are knocking it about nicely now. I’m looking forward to Brendan explaining exactly why all of it is his doing.
27 min We discussed this pre-match, but so far, Celtic’s extra attacking class telling. I know their goal was a fluke, but it came because they pinpointed a particular Rangers weakness, and I’d not be shocked if they managed a second before half-time.
25 min Again, Maeda runs at Tavernier, who gets in well to win the ball. Celtic, though, win back possession high up and O’Reilly slides in Maeda, left side of the box, who opens his body aiming for the far corner, only to pass a safe effort far too close to Butland, who parries clear a shiot he ought not to have smelt. And still Celtic sustain the attack, Hatate shifting it one outside the box before lashing a shot just wide of the far post! For all Rangers’ huffing, those were two chances far better than anything they’ve managed in open play.
24 min WHAT A CHANCE GOLDSON! The corner picks him out and he pulls off Carter-Vickers … but mistimes his jump, the ball coming off his shoulder and flying over the top!
23 min The ball bobbles about in midfield, then Rangers win another free-kick, so Tavernier will again stick a ball into the wind …or not, instead punching a straight pass dow the near side of the wall for Fabio Silva, whose attempted cross wins a corner.
22 min And here they go again, Dessers charging goalwards but cannily ushered away by Carter-Vickers.
20 min Kuhn pulls back Sterling and is booked – apparently because of the fouls previously administered by his teammates.
18 min Celtic must’ve identified a weakness in Butland’s kicking because Kyogo slides in on him as he kicks, not for the first time. He’ll not be allowed to just build the play here, but as I type Lawrence plays a poor pass after Dessers wins a challenge with Carter-Vickers. Already, this is a physical battle, and currently the defender is winning it.
17 min Kyogo drops off and win the ball, and though his onward pass is too strong, his team are gradually growing into the game, playing more of it in the Rangers half.
16 min Dessers and Carter-Vickers leap for a long ball but Fabio Silva can’t turn on it when it drops to him. So far, Rangers have lacked quality in attacking areas.
15 min The Celtic defenders look really up for this, but Rangers will take heart that already, they’ve been forced to make some desperate tackles.
13 min We said Celtic would be targeting the space in behind Tavernier and they are, Hatate striding through midfield and sliding a pass inside the Rangers skipper for Maeda, whose low cross is just too strong for Kyogo.
12 min Celtic have barely had a kick since taking the lead, but now Kyogo worries Butland, chasing him down and forcing a rushed clearance.
11 min Now Scales – whose nickname is, I trust, Prunella – wins a challenge with Fabio Silva. There are appeals for a penalty but again, he timed his intervention well.
10 min Carter-Vickers prevents Sterling taking a quick free-kick then toes the ball away for extra winding; somehow, he avoids a card.
9 min Scales sees Wright racing in behind him, so leaps into an excellent sliding challenge, taking all of the ball but leaving Wright in a heap. He must’ve landed awkwardly but should be fine.
7 min “Your picture of the main stand at Ibrox led me to wondering,” says Phil Withall, “has any non-playing person had a bigger impact on British football than Archibald Leitch? Probably not the right time to ask, what with an Old-Firm match about to kick off, but I’m intrigued.”
Good question. I guess there are administrators, dictators and proxies with a good claim too, but Leitch did some incredible work – though, of course, his involvement in the Ibrox Stadium disaster can’t be ignored.
6 min Since conceding, Rangers have dominated possession, but it’s all a bit frantic and, a goal down, they can’t really afford that kind of game lest they concede another.
5 min …directly into the hands of Joe Hart. He’s had better five minutes.
5 min Rangers win a free-kick out on the right, Tavernier to swing over a cross…
3 min Rangers will feel they’ve still a chance if they lose today, but really as the challengers, you feel they must take this opportunity to get in front.
1 min The fastest Old Firm goal remains Chris Sutton’s after 19 seconds. I’m seeking it…
OH MY COMPLETE AND UTTER DAYS GOAL! Rangers 0-1 Celtic (Maeda 21 secs)
A hump from Hart, Tavernier dithers then looks to clear, instead kicking into Maeda’s shin, the ball flying past Butland from 20 yards; what a start that is! And in the ground, with no away fans, almost eerie almost-silence.
1 min And off we go…
Blue flares, tickertape and Tina Turner. What more could anyone possibly want?
…and here they come!
Our teams are tunnelled…
The noise is ramping up inside the groond; Rangers hans have been giving plastic blue macs to wear, but one lad is topless, a balaclava protecting his identity. He does so love the soccer!
Clement, wearing Rangers of uniform of v-neck school jumper under blazer with tie, notes that his club haven’t won many Old Firm games of late. But they’ve improved a lot the last few months, according to points and date, and he wants to see a good game with his team playing well. He expects Cantwell to play later in the game, just that Lawrence was what he wanted from the start for this specific fixture, while Barisic was ill in the week and Dujon has the ability to defend and attack.
That Celtic midfield three of Hatate, Iwate, O’Reilly looks strong doesn’t it? I’m sure Rangers will have plans to disrupt them, but if Diomande and Lundstram are helping protect their defence, they’ll have a chance to control the middle of the pitch.
The Ibrox main stand though, what a work of art.
Brendan speaks, and he thinks the Old Firm games are always big. He’s excited to see his team play, but there are still six games to come after this one, adding that McGregor will play some part in the game – he just isn’t match fit.
In some games, he thinks Kyogo is denied space, but against Rangers he’s got a bit more in which to work and is part of a front line that should penetrate. His team have done well in the derbies this season – they weren’t expected to win at Ibrox earlier in the season yet they did.
Those pointing out a minor typo might like to know that cricket features the “cut shot”. Yes, I really have done it.
I wonder if, though Maeda will be on the left, Kyogo will also be looking to attack the space in behind Tavernier. Philippe Clement knows that his skipper will have to defend, but will presumably have a plan for getting him into the game going forward; I sense a taxing afternoon for Scott Wright, stationed ahead of him.
Four red cards, says you? Everything that no one wants to see, says I.
The classic Old Firm game?
Celtic, meanwhile, will look to keep the ball and get their quick passing going, pulling the Rangers centre-backs out of position by dropping off with the wide attackers looking to get into the box and midfielders running past the false nine.
Where is the game? My guess is that Rangers look to keep things tight – they’ll want their midfield three to sit down the space in front of the back four where Kyogo like to operate. They’ll be looking to double-up when attacking down the right, and to try and get crosses into the box with the top of creating confusion.
On Sky, Chris Sutton has just interviewed Henrik Larsson, but on that topic I recommend this:
As for Celtic, Brendan Rodgers is back on the bench after his touchline ban for criticising a ref – the same ref who takes charge of today’s game – which I’d have considered extending it for the way he spoke to a reporter. He names an unchanged side with skipper Callum McGregor only fit enough for the bench.
So what does it all mean? Well Rangers make two changes, Dujon Sterling in for Borna Barisic at left-back and Tom Lawrence replacing Todd Cantwell in midfield. Those look defensive-ish changes to me, but we shall see.
Teams!
Rangers (4-2-3-1): Butland; Tavernier, Goldson, Souttar, Sterling; Diomande, Lundstram; Wright, Lawrence, Silva; Dessers. Subs: McCrorie, Cantwell, Matondo, Sima, Dowell, Balogun, Barisic, King, McCausland.
Celtic: Hart; Johnston, Carter-Vickers, Scales, Taylor; O’Riley, Iwata, Hatate; Kuhn, Kyogo, Maeda. Subs: Bain, Idah, Yang, Nawrocki, Bernardo, McGregor, Forrest, Ralston, Welsh.
Preamble
Football is a global phenomenon, its unique light enveloping the planet as disparate peoples come together, transfixed by the hypnotic beauty of the beautiful game. Aye right, and then there’s Rangers v Celtic.
Because for all the patter – touching stories from here and social commentary from there – some things cant be intellectualised and sentimentalised, not even by the Guardian, and when it comes down to it, the Old Firm rammy stands alone.
But even in that context, today’s match is special, a howling, screeching, whirling Glesga of a match. Celtic, going for a third straight title and a 12th out of 13, lead the table by a point and will consider themselves favourites. But Rangers have a game in hand, home advantage, and the confidence that they are well-placed in the closes race for years – one many thought would already be over.
Which is is to say the teams arrive at Ibrox Stadium under all sorts of pressure and managing all sorts of expectations, the madness of the world transmogrified via the medium of interpretive soccer. This is going to be intense.
Kick-off: 12pm BST
