Rangers set to take ‘moral high ground’ with Celtic guard of honour
Rangers are set to host Celtic at Ibrox in the final Old Firm Derby of the season on 4 May.
Last time out against their bitter rivals, the Gers claimed a dramatic 3-2 victory at Celtic Park on 16 March thanks to Hamza Igamane’s late winner.
Interim boss Barry Ferguson may have bolstered his chances of earning a permanent contract at Ibrox via his win over Brendan Rodgers’ men last month.
However, the Bears still sit 16 points behind Celtic in the Scottish Premiership, and have no chance of winning the title.
Keith Jackson claims Rangers could give Celtic a guard of honour
If Rodgers’ side lose at Tannadice Park, and Rangers beat St Mirren on 26 April, they could look to wrap the title up against the Bears in early May, which is a scenario the authorities are keen to avoid.
But if Celtic avoid defeat against Dundee United on 26 April, they will be crowned Scottish Premiership champions before travelling to Ibrox on 4 May.
There is a possibility that Ferguson’s men could give their fierce rivals a guard of honour, as Keith Jackson told the Daily Record’s Hotline Live [15 April]: “Maybe in many ways, Rangers might take some sort of moral high ground if they did stand either side of the tunnel and applaud Celtic.”
| Scottish Premiership table (top two) | Games played | Goal difference | Points |
| 1 Celtic | 33 | 75 | 81 |
| 2 Rangers | 33 | 33 | 66 |
The success of Rangers’ season hinges on the Europa League
Rangers’ domestic season is all but over already, as the only feat the Ibrox club can still realistically achieve in Scotland is that of delaying Celtic’s title celebrations.
The Bears were defeated by Rodgers’ side in the League Cup final, and also faced an embarrassing exit in the Scottish Cup at the hands of Championship outfit Queen’s Park.
However, the Gers’ Europa League hopes are very much still intact after they held Athletic Bilbao to a 0-0 draw in Glasgow on 10 April, despite being reduced to 10 men after Robin Propper was shown a red card.
Ferguson and Co will believe that they can get the better of Bilbao on away soil on 17 April, having successfully maintained a clean sheet against Ernesto Valverde’s men last time out in trying circumstances.
Liam Kelly was particularly impressive between the sticks as he saved a penalty after replacing Jack Butland, but may have to be at his best once again in Spain.