There’s a massive difference between setting up with a back four at home to St Mirren and taking the same idea into an Old Firm. The tempo is higher, the mistakes get punished quicker, and anything that looks even slightly fragile tends to get found out. That’s why I just can’t see Danny Röhl going into Saturday with the same back four if he thinks it leaves us exposed.
Start with a shape that can become a five
The sensible play, for me, is building in flexibility from the first whistle. Not a panicked, defensive set-up, but a structure that can drop into a five at the back without the ball when we need it. That one tweak can be the difference between riding out the storm and giving away cheap goals early doors.
Old Firm games swing on moments. A loose full-back, a centre-half pulled out, someone caught between pressing and holding. If we can keep our distances right and make it hard for them to play through us, you give yourself a chance to grow into the game rather than chase it.
Sterling and Barron feel like practical picks
It wouldn’t surprise me at all if Sterling comes back into the side, with Barron starting as well. Not because anyone’s a miracle worker, but because you need players who can cope with the duel side of it and still have the legs to reset when the first press gets beaten.
This is where the “fragile” feeling comes from when you go too light in an Old Firm. If the first contact is lost too often, the whole shape gets stretched and you’re suddenly defending your own box far more than you planned.
Get it wide early, and make them defend properly
When we do have the ball, it doesn’t need to be negative. In fact, the best way to defend at this level is keeping them facing their own goal now and again. Getting it wide to Gassama or Meghoma quickly could be key, especially if they’ve got a forward playing as the right wing-back. That’s a match-up Rangers should be trying to lean on.
Quick switches, early deliveries, and asking questions out wide. Even if it doesn’t create chances straight away, it pins them back and buys us breathing space.
Learn the lesson from Hearts: don’t concede in bursts
I’m expecting a similar set-up to the Hearts game, but with a better performance and outcome. We started brightly enough that day, then two quick goals knocked the confidence clean out of us. In this fixture, you can’t let that happen. One goal is bad enough. Two in a flash and you’re suddenly playing the game they want.
Keep it tight early, stay flexible, and when the openings appear, be ruthless. That’s the balance Rangers need at the weekend.
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