The first Glasgow Derby is upon Celtic and the stakes could not be higher.
Win at Ibrox and Brendan Rodgers’ men go four points clear of their closest rivals. Lose, and top spot is gone and a huge psychological advantage is handed to Michael Beale in the early stages of the stages.
The fixture is set up to be a blockbuster and with the injury problems Celtic have at the moment, they will have to dig deep to come away from Ibrox with all three points.
And former Celtic manager, Neil Lennon, was asked what he thought would be important for Celtic to do if they have designs on leaving Ibrox with all three points.
Lennon said [PLZ Soccer], “To quell the crowd. I think it’s really important, from a Celtic point of view, that you don’t let Rangers get a head of steam up and get the crowd sort of swarming them forward.
“And Rangers be very, what’s the word I’m looking for, formidable at home. So my interest would be to try and keep the ball as far away from the goal as possible.”
Reflecting on the last derby he managed for Celtic at Ibrox, Lennon continued, “On my last one at Ibrox, the one we won 2-0, we basically took the centre and we kicked it right in the corner.
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“I watched Liverpool against Newcastle kick-off, back, boom and into the channel and then you play your 50/50 football.
“And it worked there for us that day and we were camped in for a long period of time. We kept the crowd really, really quiet so I think that’s really important for Celtic to do.”
This afternoon will be a difficult tie for Celtic. Brendan Rodgers must decide if he should start any of the three new signings he has made this week or does he go with players who were already at the club.
But Rodgers knows what it takes to win a Glasgow Derby. Especially at Ibrox. Rodgers has led Celtic to five wins at Ibrox where he watched his side trounce Rangers 5-1 in 2017 and that infamous 3-2 win where an Odsonne Edouard winner helped secure a win for 10-man Celtic in 2018.
Rodgers will still be confident of securing a win. In 13 fixtures in his first tenure as the Celtic manager, the Irishman lost just once, won 10 and drew two against Rangers.
In other news, Peter Grant now thinks Celtic have made a ‘tremendous’ signing who could start today