Celtic vs. Rangers Showdown Will Decide Who Wins Scottish Premiership Title, Says Andy Walker | Football news

Born and raised in Glasgow, I say that happily every time he arrives, it was hands down the best game I ever played in.

I’m sure former teammates like Paul McStay and Paul Elliott would say the same; Graeme Souness and Mark Walters would back them up from across town.

Celtic versus Rangers is always highly anticipated, always fiercely contested, and depending on the outcome, it will offer you either the most extreme ups and downs or the depressing lows.

This season will be a bit different as there will not be fans inside the stadium generating the noise, passion and color that we normally associate with the game, but the result will be just as important.

Preparations for the Celtic chieftain, Neil Lennon, have been far from ideal.

Attacking midfielder Ryan Christie, who would have been a safe starter, has been forced into isolation as a result of his proximity to his Scotland teammate Stuart Armstrong, who tested positive for Covid-19.

Lennon’s number one forward Odsonne Edouard, another safe starter, also tested positive for the virus while on international duty with France Under-21s and although his period of isolation will end the day before the game, his inactivity for the final 10 days will surely rule it out. a starting slot.

Nir Bitton and Hatem Elhamed, both from Israel, also tested positive and will definitely miss Celtic Park on Saturday.

The missing great players will always make the headlines, but it also offers others a chance to shine and perhaps it’s time to really judge the strength of this Celtic team under Lennon.

Now that the transfer window has closed, the advantage for Celtic is that all of their best players are still in Glasgow. All Lennon can ask for now is your total focus and commitment.

I can see him opt for Vasilis Barkas in goal, a three behind Christopher Jullien, Shane Duffy and Kristofer Ajer. Jeremie Frimpong is certain to be a right back, although I’m not sure who will play on the left.

Uruguayan Diego Laxalt was signed to compete with Greg Taylor as a left back / left back, but since he hasn’t played since July, I imagine Taylor will get the nod.

Scott Brown, Calum McGregor and Olivier Ntcham can occupy the center area, while the most important decision for Lennon will be who plays up front.

The stage is set for Leigh Griffiths and Patrik Klimala to form an unlikely partnership for Celtic. Griffiths has surpassed the field before and proved his natural goalscorer by leading the opening goal against St Johnstone two weeks ago.

Celtic have a prolific scorer on their books, why not trust your instincts and play with him early on? He showed how much a game can affect when he came on as a substitute against St Johnstone and turned a draw into a win and three points.

Teammate Klimala also took his goal brilliantly against St Johnstone, I really admired his attitude as he bounced back after being knocked out in one inning to quickly recover and finish with some flair.

It didn’t work out for him when he started earlier this season against St Mirren, but when you pay £ 3.5 million for a striker there comes a point where you have to see how well he can lead the line against tough opponents. .

It doesn’t get much more difficult than a game against your bitter rivals in a season that would see the title winners go down in history.

Slowly but surely Steven Gerrard is improving his Rangers side and after winning at Celtic Park so convincingly last December, the last time these two sides met, he will approach the game with confidence.

Like Lennon, Gerrard will have to do without some great players, not because of Covid issues, but because of injuries.

Nicola Katic, Joe Aribo and Kemar Roofe probably would have started, but injuries are likely to cause all three to miss.

If Gerrard wants to secure the title in this historic season, he too will need to rely on the strength of his team for every unpredictable scenario.

Injuries and suspensions affect all clubs, but Rangers have a responsibility to show they can succeed and offer a serious title challenge.

Nothing is ever won or lost in October, but the encounters between the two are likely to go a long way in deciding who wins in May.

Both sides can afford the occasional slip on a draw here or there, but I don’t see either side losing too many games this season.

With 12 points between these two at stake, three out of four wins for each side would increase their chances of success.

It happens at 12:30 pm on Saturday!