CELTIC and Rangers meet in a day of destiny at Saturday lunchtime and it's time to batten down the hatches.
With three games to go, champions Celtic have home advantage, no away fans, a three points lead and a superior goal difference going into this and a win would effectively secure the title.
Brendan Rodgers' men also have a number of advantages over their rivals – they are in better form having won five of their last six games – and they appear to have something of the Indian sign over Rangers when it comes to these big games.
They ended up cruising to a win against third placed Hearts last week and although Rangers also won the next day against Kilmarnock, it might have been different had Killie not been reduced to ten men when they were a goal up.
Ibrox boss Philippe Clement bit at Rodgers' prediction that they would ‘have some fun' this week. Whether the Belgian can use those words as motivation for his squad will be the crux of the matter here.
Rangers realistically not only need to win, but do it by a couple of goals for the goal difference too if they want to win the Premiership and that's a huge ask at Parkhead.
How the bookies view it: Celtic being backed
Celtic started the week odds-against, but that's gone and the 19/20 on offer from Betfred is the closest you can get to evens at present.
Rangers can be backed at 3/1 with bet365 and the draw is 14/5 with McBookie.com.
Recent head to heads: Celtic on top
Celtic have already won home and away and were within seconds of making it a clean sweep in the last game at Ibrox with Rangers netting late on to make it 3-3.
Rangers haven't won at Parkhead on their last six visits.
Players to watch: Kyogo to down Rangers again?
Kyogo Furuhashi has got his form back at the right time and that usually spells disaster for Rangers. The Japanese striker loves a goal against the Ibrox side and grabbed a double last week against Hearts. He is 8/5 to score anytime with William Hill.
The much-maligned Fabio Silva hasn't exactly lived up to his £35 million price tag that Wolves paid for the on loan Rangers striker, but the Portuguese hitman did grab Rangers'equaliser last week. He is 18/5 to score anytime with William Hill.
Probable line-ups:
Celtic have a full squad to choose from with Daizen Maeda back quicker than expected. Rangers still have plenty missing though with Connor Goldson out for the season and central defensive partner Leon Balogun a doubt. They are also missing the likes of Danilo, Oscar Cortes, Ryan Jack and Abdallah Sima although Rabbi Matondo could return.
Celtic: Hart, Johnston, Carter-Vickers, Taylor, McGregor, Hatate, O’Riley, Maeda, Kyogo, Kuhn.
Rangers: Butland, Tavernier, Souttar, Davies, Barisic, Lundstram, Diomande, Cantwell, Sterling, Silva, Dessers.
Anything else catch the eye? Celtic too strong
A draw would probably suit Celtic here, but try telling that to the 60,000 expectant fans in the east end of Glasgow on Saturday lunchtime.
Rangers are capable of winning, they have the players, but there is always that nagging doubt they don't have the mentality. The likes of captain James Tavernier turns to a quivering wreck when he's up against the pace of Daizen Maeda for example and it's hard to see a side that conceded goals, don't take enough of their chances and have not beaten Celtic when it matters for a long time raising their game here.
The visitors have central defensive issues and Celtic aren't clever either at the back. Go for a home win and both teams to score too at an excellent 23/10 with William Hill.
Finally, Fabio Silva will be a marked man. He has a penchant for not staying on his feet, shall we say and he could either get cautioned for that or retaliation at a big price of 9/2 with bet365.
This Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and Rangers will be played on May 11, 2024 and kick off at 12:30. Check below for our tipsters best Celtic vs Rangers prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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