Barry Ferguson’s re-jigged Rangers set-up might have worked to a tee against Fenerbahce but Celtic away in an Old Firm derby? That is an altogether different challenge.
And former Rangers striker Kris Boyd cannot help but fear that a tactic which worked wonders in a 3-1 Europa League triumph over Jose Mourinho is bound to fall flat at the home of Brendan Rodgers’ runaway Premiership leaders.
Barry Ferguson used Vaclav Cerny and Cyriel Dessers as something of a front two, while dropping Hamza Igamane to the bench.
The interim boss was rewarded in style. Dessers opened the scoring in Istanbul while Mourinho would highlight the threat posed by Cerny as the Wolfsburg loanee twice darted in behind a static Fenerbahce backline to score.
The re-called Connor Barron was ‘phenomenal’ alongside Nico Raskin, pushing Mohamed Diomande forward to press from the front. Ridvan Yilmaz and Jefte performed well at wing-back meanwhile, with a three man backline marshalled by the imperious John Souttar and Leon Balogun helping to offset the duo’s defensive deficiencies.
Rangers host Fenerbahce on Thursday for tomorrow’s second-leg. Boyd is expecting a similar approach. If it ain’t broke, after all, well then there’s nothing to fix.
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Kris Boyd explains what Rangers must alter for Celtic clash
“I don’t expect Barry to change much on Thursday night,” Boyd says. “And I would imagine, if they go and get a decent result against Fenerbahce, it will be the same line-up that goes again at Celtic Park.
“I thought Rangers were excellent last Thursday and will be looking to continue that this week. It is going to be two huge games. A massive game at Celtic Park.”
Boyd is concerned that Rangers could inadvertently play into their neighbours’ hands if Ferguson again deploys a wing-back system. Nicolas Kuhn and Jota tend to play high and wide.
As such, they havae the potential to pin Jefte and Yilmaz back towards their own goal while denying the visitors a valuable outlet going forward.
Then, there is the prospect of Daizen Maeda meeting James Tavernier yet again. The Rangers captain just cannot escape his perennial paralysis demon.
Just as Tavernier began to make a new home for himself at centre-half, Maeda has been a revelation since shifting from the wing to a rampaging centre-forward role.
“It will be interesting to see how Rangers approach that,” Boyd adds. “Against Fenerbahce, they played two strikers [Edin Dzeko and Youssef En-Nesyri].
“And, if you look at the how Celtic play, it will be the one through the middle with two higher, you’d imagine Kuhn and Jota. In terms of that three-v-one one centrally, the Rangers full-backs will end up getting pushed back.
“There [will be] more issues elsewhere on the pitch if Rangers decide to go with that three at the back.
“Yes, it gives you that solid base to work from. But, because of how high Celtic’s wingers are, Rangers’ full-backs or wing-backs will end up getting pushed back. It will become a five and you can’t get out!
“So Rangers will have to be a lot braver on the ball, try and implement that, use it as an overload and build from the back.
“Whatever happens, it’s going to be a fascinating contest. You’ve got one which is probably all-out attack and you would imagine Rangers will be a little bit more cautious.”
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Rangers’ recent history away to Celtic makes for worrying reading
Rangers could hardly have kicked off the New Year in more spectacular style. A moment of brief respite from the dying embers of the Philippe Clement era, Rangers obliterated Celtic 3-0 to keep the Hogmanay Celebrations going.
Rangers’ last win away at Parkhead, however, came without a single fan in the stadium during the COVID restrictions of 2020.
“The last game against Celtic, Rangers started the game on a positive footing,” Boyd explains. “[But] Celtic at Celtic Park are a different animal and it will be a very, very different game for Rangers. We’ve seen better Rangers teams go to Celtic Park against worse Celtic teams and lose the game.
“It’s going to be a big challenge for Barry Ferguson and his team to go across the city and get three points. But the most important thing for Barry will be that performance on Thursday night.”
