Very rarely does an Old Firm game take a back seat when it comes to the fixture list an few derbies have meant as little to Rangers fans as the one on the horizon.
Of course, every derby matters, but with Fenerbahce up first in the Europa League with a place in the quarter-finals at stake, there is no contest in terms of which is the bigger game.
With honours even so far this season after a new year 3-0 win at Ibrox, Barry Ferguson will be hoping to emulate his tactical masterclass against Fenerbahce by outsmarting Brendan Rodgers too in his first derby as Rangers manager.
The interim boss certainly won’t let the current Scottish Premiership table diminish how important a fixture it is by the time that kick-off comes around.
What could be key, is how Rangers handle Daizen Maeda, Celtic’s in-form striker who has stepped into Kyogo Furuhashi’s boots with aplomb.
James Tavernier vs Daizen Maeda is key Rangers battle
Rangers were told to sign Maeda by Craig Moore with the former Light Blues skipper revealing that Ross Wilson knocked back a budget move based purely on Celtic already shopping in the J-League market and didn’t want to be seen copying them.
Not his finest hour.
As always, it looks like James Tavernier will be tasked with handling Maeda, this time though, potentially, from a different position.
After impressing against Fenerbahce at centre-half, and with Dujon Sterling’s return to fitness, it would be a surprise if Ferguson reverts to a formation that wasn’t working.
Reducing the space in the channels between the centre-halves and wing-backs could also help to nullify Celtic’s pacey attack.
After missing the win at Ibrox and having to watch Ridvan Yilmaz play out of position and do a better job defensively, Tavernier could well be about to line up at Parkhead in a different role himself.
What has Tavernier said about new centre-half role?
Tavernier addressed Rangers European form compared to their domestic woes and should be fully aware of what Maeda is capable of by now with the Gers captain more than happy with a switch that could prolong his career:
“He (Ferguson) obviously just simplified it and last Thursday in the first leg he wasn’t scared to change the formation,” Tavernier has said on being moved into the middle of defence. “We had maybe 24 hours to work on it and he’s kept it really simple.”
“The lads have really taken on the information and really taken on what it means to play for this club. I actually enjoyed the change of formation. I played most of my youth team days at centre-back.
“It’s obviously a position that I can see myself playing in going forward because it might help me to prolong my career. But I feel fit as anything and I’m there to be an asset for the team, to do a job wherever it may be. But I feel really comfortable at centre-back.”
How comfortable he will still feel at full-time on Sunday is another question entirely.
