Mohamed Diomande and Oscar Cortes start – Rangers confirmed XI v Ayr United
Philippe Clement has confirmed his Rangers starting XI ahead of the Scottish Cup fixture against Ayr United on Saturday 10 February.
As expected, Jack Butland starts in between the sticks, with Connor Goldson and John Souttar ahead of him in defence.
James Tavernier maintains his right-back spot, but Ridvan Yilmaz is replaced by Borna Barisic to make up the back four in front of Butland.
Nico Raskin and Ryan Jack are joined by Mohamed Diomande to create a midfield trio, with Oscar Cortes handed his first Gers start, alongside Scott Wright and Fabio Silva in attack.
Rangers took to X to announce their confirmed XI.
Rangers to face Scott Brown once again
Ayr United pose a very different challenge for Clement and Rangers. New boss Scott Brown, a former Celtic midfielder, will be excited to manage his team against his Old Firm rivals and will want to do anything to minimise their impact.
While Clement will still be taking this fixture seriously, with a spot in the next round of the Scottish Cup at stake, it also gives the Gers an opportunity to rest key players and experiment with new signings.
Diomande and Cortes both arrived at Ibrox during the January transfer window, with both waiting to earn their first start in Rangers colours.
The visitors are having an average season in the Scottish Championship, sitting in sixth place, six points from the promotion playoff spots and just two points above the relegation qualification spot.
History is also on Rangers’ side in this fixture. Since October 2013, the two sides have played seven times and the Gers have claimed victory in all of them. Ayr have scored just two goals in those meetings, in contrast to Rangers’ 21.
In other Rangers news, a pundit has predicted what Light Blues fans will want to make Scott Brown “squirm” at Ibrox.
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