Arthur's Column // 31st August 2022

Saturday's game against Celtic needs no introduction.

It's the fixture every player wants to be involved in and I wish I was able to pull my boots on for just more chance in an Old Firm clash. I used to love playing against our biggest rivals. On the morning of the game, I was up early at the team hotel, curtains pulled back, showered and down for breakfast. I'd be thinking about my opponent and how I was going to get the better of him.

Quite a few times I was against Didier Agathe and I was aware his pace was his biggest asset. I always wanted to go tight on him, keep him with his back to our goal, and not allow him to get a run on me to get crosses into the box. If the likes of Neil McCann or Peter Lovenkrands were playing in front of me, we'd always make sure we were ready to double up to nullify his threat. Over the piece, I think we handled him fairly well.

There is no doubt the current Celtic team has some very good wide players. Jota, Maeda and Abada all have good qualities and we need to make sure we don't allow them to settle at Parkhead. They must not get into a rhythm. James Tavernier has played in dozens of Old Firm games and his experience as a full-back will be vital on Saturday at Parkhead. He is strong in the tackle and will focus on his defending, first and foremost. He can set the tempo and lead by example for the rest of the defence. Then, when the moment is right, he can get up the park and join in on the attack.

James knows what it takes to beat Celtic at Parkhead. Connor Goldson, Ryan Jack and Ryan Kent also know how to handle the occasion. It will be a new experience for the likes of Antonio Colak, Tom Lawrence, Malik Tillman and Rabbi Matondo They all have the qualities to make a positive impact on proceedings. And I think we can get a good result on Saturday.

If we can get Malik on the ball then he will create. He is a goal threat and also links well with Antonio. As we look for goals, the pair of them are going to be extremely important.

We go into this game two points behind Celtic. If we win, we go top of the SPFL Premiership. There is a demand on Rangers to win every game and I totally understand that. But, on this occasion, with the huge advantage in numbers of the home crowd, if we left Parkhead with a point it would also be an excellent result.

It would have meant that we've come through August having qualified for the Champions League under huge pressure and made into the latter stages of the League Cup.

Avoiding defeat on Saturday also keeps us unbeaten and right up there with Celtic.

I'd rather we win, of course. We are more than capable of getting a huge result. But, we'd also need to take stock of the bigger picture if we left with a share of the points.

Good luck to Giovanni and the players.