THERE'S a feelgood factor at Rangers right now and Giovanni van Bronckhorst's men should keep that going by sweeping Queen of the South aside in the last 16 of the Scottish League Cup.
After an unconvincing start to the new campaign, Rangers have roared into life in the last few weeks and head into this cup tie with their confidence soaring.
The Champions League play-off victory over PSV Eindhoven was absolutely massive for the Ibrox club and they followed it up by crushing Ross County 4-0 at the weekend.
Our man Mark tipped a Gers win with plenty of goals and his BTTS bet might have landed too had ref Don Robertson sent off James Sands for a blatant last-man foul instead of failing to award even a free-kick.
Despite that let off, Rangers still turned in one of their best domestic displays this term and they look in good shape ahead of the first Old Firm game of the season at Celtic Park on Saturday.
Van Bronckhorst will probably give some fringe-players a run-out ahead of such an important derby but his side should still have way too much firepower for a Queen of the South team in poor form.
The Doonhamers were relegated from the Championship last term and have started life in League One badly, winning just one of their first five games.
They lost 3-1 to Falkirk at the weekend, with the Bairns justifying my faith in them, and will need to drastically improve to avoid a heavy defeat at Ibrox.
How the bookies view it
Queen of the South are a whopping 45/1 at Coral for a shock Ibrox win while the best price for a Rangers victory inside 90 minutes is 1/14 at Coral. Even the draw is huge at 12/1 with Betfair.
Recent head to head
When these sides last faced off in 2016 it was also in the League Cup at Ibrox and Rangers eased to a 5-0 win at Ibrox. They also locked horns 12 times when Gers were in the lower leagues, with Queens memorably winning on penalties in another League Cup tie at Ibrox.
Rangers dominated the head-to-head in those years, winning seven of those matches, and the last five meetings have all ended in victories for the Ibrox side.
Players to watch
I'd expect van Bronckhorst to freshen up his attack but all of the forwards are odds-on for a goal at McBookie. Scott Arfield is 11/10 for anytime scorer though and that looks good value as he should start in midfield and has netted twice already this term.
Connor Murray scored twice for Queen of the South in the group stage of the cup and also netted a double in their only league win so far. He looks their best bet for an Ibrox strike at 7/1 with McBookie.
Anything else catch the eye?
Rangers will try to blow Queen of the South away early on so I like the look of the evens on offer at Ladbrokes for over 1.5 first-half goals. McBookie also price a goal inside the first 10 minutes at 13/5.
Given that it ended 5-0 when these sides last faced off at Ibrox, backing Gers to win by four goals or more also stands a chance at 15/8 with Paddy Power.
Bet builders are a good way to find some value and combining a goal in the first 15 minutes with over 2.5 match goals pays 165/100 at McBookie.
This Scottish League Cup match between Rangers and Queen of the South will be played on Aug 30, 2022 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Rangers vs Queen of the South prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
