NafisaThe nerves that have occasionally crept into Ibrox this season threatened to return on Wednesday night, with Rangers once again finding themselves in a position where missed chances and a lack of cutting edge began to create unnecessary tension.
The Light Blues had opportunities to put the game beyond doubt before the interval against St Mirren, but failed to make their dominance count.
That allowed the visitors to grow into the contest after the break, with Rangers looking increasingly vulnerable as the clock ticked towards full time.
For a team trying to rebuild confidence and challenge Celtic domestically, it was another evening where the pressure threatened to overwhelm the performance.
But then came the moment that changed everything.
With the game seemingly heading towards another frustrating draw, substitute Bojan Miovski struck in stoppage time to seal a crucial 1-0 victory for Derek McInnes and his players.
It was Rangers’ fourth consecutive victory, and the late winner provided a huge release of tension around Ibrox.
Now, however, attention has already turned towards an altogether bigger occasion.
Rangers will welcome Celtic to Ibrox on Sunday for the Premier Sports Cup quarter-final, with the authorities ordering that only home supporters will be permitted inside the 50,000-capacity stadium amid the ongoing ticket allocation dispute between the two Glasgow giants.
For McInnes, it will be his first Old Firm fixture as Rangers manager — and he knows the atmosphere inside Ibrox could play a major role.
McInnes wants Rangers supporters to make the difference
The Rangers boss is under no illusions about the scale of the challenge facing his side.
Celtic have established themselves as the dominant force in Scottish football in recent years, but McInnes believes Rangers have an opportunity to make their home advantage count in a fixture where momentum can swing dramatically.
Rather than expecting his team to control the contest from start to finish, the Rangers boss has urged supporters to remain behind his players throughout the inevitable difficult spells.
He said: “I think we’ve got to bring the crowd with us.
“You’re not going to play Celtic and dominate the game for 90 minutes. We’ll have spells, they’ll have spells, it’s just the way it is.
“I think it’s important that we tap into having that 50,000 behind us and be behind the players, support them, have their backs, not be on their backs and really make it as tough for Celtic as possible.
“We’ve got our part to play in that and I felt that if we can capitalise on good play and good opportunities, which we didn’t do last night and we didn’t do against Motherwell (also won 1-0) obviously, if we can get ourselves in front, give the crowd something to get behind, then I think the strength of our club can be shown.
“I think if the 50,000 can be utilised and we can have the strength of performance in the team that will help the team, it will be difficult to stop.
“There’s been a lot of frustration over a period of time at the club and it’s up to us to try and show that we’re going to deliver something a bit different.
“We recognise Celtic are a good team who have been the main title winners and the team that’s picked up more trophies than any other club in recent years.
“We just want to make sure that we give ourselves a chance to be relevant domestically again in terms of winning trophies, and Sunday gives us a chance to take a step towards that.”
That final point perhaps sums up the significance of Sunday’s meeting better than anything else.
McInnes is not simply looking for another victory.
He wants Rangers to demonstrate that they are capable of competing with Celtic when the stakes are highest and, crucially, that the frustration which has surrounded the club for so long can finally begin to turn into something more positive.
The 1-0 victory over St Mirren may not have been the most convincing performance, but it extended Rangers’ winning run to four matches and gave the squad another boost heading into the biggest domestic fixture of McInnes’ reign so far.
And with a full Ibrox behind them, the Rangers boss clearly believes his players have an opportunity to produce something special.
The message to the supporters is therefore unmistakable: back the team, embrace the pressure and make Sunday’s Old Firm clash as uncomfortable as possible for Celtic.
For McInnes, the first chapter of his Rangers-Celtic story is almost here.
And he wants all 50,000 voices at Ibrox to be part of it.
Nafisa
