Cyriel Dessers decision made in five changes – Rangers confirmed XI v Queen’s Park
Philippe Clement has done what many would have expected of him and made five changes to his Rangers starting line-up to face Queen’s Park.
The Gers welcome Queen’s Park to Ibrox on Sunday (9 February) for Scottish Cup action as the home side looks to carry on their winning run.
However, facing opposition that are in the league below them has led the boss to make five changes to the side in order to keep his side fresh for their upcoming games.
Rangers announced their starting line-up via X (9 February) confirming the changes with Liam Kelly, Rafael Fernandes, Robin Propper, Bailey Rice and Nedim Bajrami all come into the starting line-up.
This means Jack Butland, John Souttar, Clinton Nsiala, Nicolas Raskin and Cyriel Dessers all drop to the bench after their 4-0 Scottish Premiership win against Ross County last Sunday (2 February).
Philippe Clement makes five Rangers changes
Given the Light Blues are facing a side that sit in the league below them, it’s not surprising to see a number of changes to the team with the home side the cler favourite in this tie.
It has been a tough season for Rangers this season and sitting 13 points behind Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premiership means there have been questions about Clement’s job security throughout the term.
However, the form of the Gers seems to be on the up now and in 11 games, Clement’s side have lost just one game which was against Manchester United in the Europa League.
Nevertheless, with the league seeming very much out of reach now, it is up to the Glasgow side to give their supporters something to cheer about and there will be a lot of emphasis on trying to bring home the Scottish Cup having lost the Scottish League cup final.
Rangers prepare to take on Queen’s Park
The Light Blues saw off Fraserburgh 5-0 last time out in the cup and Clement will be hoping his side can produce a similar seamless performance to see off their opponents this time round.
Queen’s Park come into this tie sitting midtable in the Scottish Championship and they too will be hoping for a win to continue playing for something this term.
However, last time out in the Scottish Cup, the Spiders just scraped past Montrose with goals in the 91st and then 98th minute to win the game 3-2.
With that in mind, Rangers will certainly know they are the favourites to win this game and should be able to ease past their opponents to get through to the next round.
Furthermore, with the tie taking place at Ibrox, the Light Blues should have no worries when it comes to running the show and showing they do still have plenty of quality in their side.