Former Rangers striker Kris Boyd suggests that the key to success for his old club at Parkhead this Sunday lies in frustrating their Glasgow rivals.
Currently, Rangers find themselves two points behind the reigning champions Celtic in the Scottish Premiership table with three games played.
Boyd, who also represented Scotland 18 times, labeled the Hoops as “heavy favourites” for the upcoming Old Firm clash, which will take place in front of a home crowd exclusively cheering for Celtic.
Last season, Rangers struggled to overcome Brendan Rodgers’ team, failing to secure a victory in five encounters.
Their last win in the east end of Glasgow dates back to October 2020, when Connor Goldson scored twice in a 2-0 victory - achieved in an empty stadium due to COVID-19 restrictions. Rangers went on to lift the title that season and Philippe Clement's side will be desperate to set themselves up for more of the same this time around.
Read more:
- 'I will always make myself available': Hagi clarifies Rangers stance
- Vaclav Cerny believes the best is yet to come from him at Rangers
“You look at Rangers in recent times going across the city, they’ve struggled," Boyd told Sky Sports.
“There’s no getting away from it, and they’re going to have to find a way to start getting results again.
“Celtic have started the season really, really well. I thought Rangers at the weekend (6-0 win over Ross County), in terms of that performance, was probably the best 90 minutes of the season.
“But there’s no getting away from it. Rangers’ head to head versus Celtic has not been good enough.
“They’re going to have to address that if they’re going to be successful.
"There is no doubt Saturday's performance will give them a belief and confidence. You look at Rabbi Matondo, he's been linked with a move away. He came in and got a couple of goals, Cyriel Dessers got another couple, Danilo got one, Tom Lawrence breaking from midfielder and scoring.
"So the confidence is there. But I mean Ross County were very poor at the weekend. I don't expect Celtic to be that poor, I hope they are but I can't see it.
Read more:
-
Rangers chances of winning a penalty at Celtic Park revealed
-
Rangers would sell Dessers and Matondo should the right offer arise
“I think from Rangers’ point of view, they’re just going to have to go and try and frustrate Celtic to start with, and then see where that takes them.
“Because I think if you go and try and take Celtic on at their game, at home, it is going to be very difficult to come out on top.
“We’ve seen it before, where you’re underdogs and you go to frustrate a team, and you’re able to nick something, I think that’s probably where Rangers are at this moment in time.”
