Rangers are preparing to welcome Motherwell to Ibrox in the Scottish Premiership as they look to overtake the Fir Park club in the table.
It is 3rd versus 4th in this Sunday afternoon clash with Rangers fans descending on the famous stadium for a 3pm kick off in Glasgow.
With Michael Beale relieving the substantial pressure on his shoulders with back-to-back wins the Ibrox manager was quick to shift the focus back onto Motherwell in midweek.
Whilst many might’ve felt the Rangers manager would’ve been indulgent in praise for his charges after an impressive 1-0 Europa League win over Real Betis, Beale stopped short of praise.
Having beaten St Johnstone 2-0 last weekend its two from two after a bitterly disappointing opening to the season where Rangers were humiliated in Champions League competition and booed off the park against a Celtic team who were still good enough to beat the Gers despite being threadbare defensively.
As a result, there is still plenty of scrutiny on the Rangers manager who is two games into a potentially defining seven game run in his Ibrox career.
Motherwell are the third Rangers game since the break and the club’s second of four in a row at Ibrox, with a must-win League Cup clash against Livingston to come in midweek.
Beale’s XI v Motherwell?
Before then, the Rangers boss must welcome Motherwell without three key midfield players, Nicolas Raskin joining Todd Cantwell and Kieran Dowell on the treatment table in midweek.
Throw into the mix a long-term injury to Steven Davis, and that fractured cheekbone to striker Danilo, and suddenly the Rangers boss needs to be smart about how he uses his options over the next period up until October’s international break.
We suspect the Rangers boss will make only one change to defence, with Ridvan Yilmaz replacing Borna Barisic, whilst that midfield area raises a few questions.
Heading into the game, the Ibrox boss spoke glowingly about young Bailey Rice and with Tom Lawrence only just returning from injury we suspect he’ll be rested for Livi.
With Motherwell also set to start fellow teenager Lennon Miller in the middle of the park this is an opportunity to test the hype surrounding the talented 16-year-old Rangers star.
Consistency of selection has been severely lacking at the top end of the park and we reckon Michael Beale will stick with the trio who got the win over Real Betis.
Rangers v Motherwell – Scottish Premiership 4-3-2-1
GK – Jack Butland
DR – James Tavernier
DC – Connor Goldson
DC – Ben Davies
DL – Ridvan Yilmaz
CDM – John Lundstram
CM – Bailey Rice
CM – Jose Cifuentes
RF – Abdallah Sima
LF – Rabbi Matondo
ST – Kemar Roofe
How to watch Scottish Premiership clash:
Rangers v Motherwell is set to kick off at 3pm GMT in Glasgow at Ibrox Stadium with the match only available to view live on RangersTV Pay Per View.
Access to a live stream of the match is available for £9.99 via the club’s official website or via the RangersTV app and it is the only place you can officially stream the game this afternoon.
