Rangers face Partick Thistle tonight at The Energy Check Stadium at Firhill. After a disappointing defeat at the weekend, Rangers will be keen to show a reaction. However, Firhill has proven to be a tricky venue for the team so far this season. A 2-2 draw earlier in the season was followed by a 3-1 cup win, but that required extra time. Rangers need to get the job done in 90 minutes this time around.
PARTICK THISTLE LAST 5 LEAGUE RESULTS
Aberdeen (away), 1-0 defeat
Ross County (home), 2-0 win
Celtic (home), 2-1 defeat
St Johnstone (away), 3-1 win
Motherwell (away), 1-1 draw
Having only lost to Aberdeen and Celtic in their last five matches, and only by 1 goal each time, it’s clear Thistle have sorted out some issues from earlier in the season with regards their defending. They have a few injuries for tonight, but welcome back Connor Sammon to the squad. In the Motherwell match, Kris Doolan started up front, but he rarely seems to get a start in matches against Rangers. He is a real danger from the bench, however. Against Motherwell, Blair Spittal came on from the bench, and I suspect he’ll start the game tonight. Thistle will look to be difficult to break down, to get the game played at a slow tempo, and play on the break.
For Rangers, this will be the fifth game in thirteen days. The starting team has only been changed for the game against Fraserburgh, and some players also started that night. There will be a few players needing a couple of days rest, so there’s a chance there will be a little rotation tonight. For me, there will be only one change from the weekend. The struggles in midfield in the first half could give Greg Docherty a chance to come into the side.
PREDICTED STARTING LINE UP
Foderingham
Tavernier
Bates
Martin
John
Holt
Goss
Docherty
Candeias
Morelos
Murphy
I have a suspicion Windass will start from the bench in this one, as he’s played in every game over this past couple of weeks. He took a lot of criticism for his performance on Saturday, and looked a little jaded. Docherty is a player who likes getting beyond the striker from midfield, so should prevent Morelos from feeling too isolated. Jason Cummings will be used from the bench again, and played from the start against Ayr United.
This match will be decided by the tempo Rangers are able to play at. If they start slowly, Thistle will be very difficult to break down. Rangers don’t have the sort of players in midfield who can open sides up when defences are packed. The best performances come when the team get the ball wide quickly and expose full backs. If Sean Goss can get on the ball and move things quickly, they’ll give themselves the best chance of doing that.
Games like this are never easy to predict, and it often feels like strange results happen on the nights you wouldn’t normally play games on. Despite this, there were positives to take from Saturday, and I’m going to predict a 2-0 win for Rangers.
How do you see the game going? Tweet us @rangersnewsuk with your thoughts!