RANGERS are a team transformed under Philippe Clement and it would cap a perfect week for the Ibrox side if they beat St Johnstone to cut Celtic's SPFL Premiership lead to just two points.
Clement got his hands on the League Cup at Hampden on Sunday after a battling 1-0 win over Aberdeen and that came just three days after Rangers booked a place in the last 16 of the Europa League with a thrilling triumph over Real Betis in Spain.
As if that wasn't enough to cheer the Light Blue legions, bitter rivals Celtic lost 2-0 at home to Hearts between those matches, a defeat that has wiped out their once-commanding lead in the Premiership title race.
When Clement took over from Michael Beale in October, Rangers were seven points adrift but they can now move a point clear of Brendan Rodgers' side if they win their two games in hand.
It has been a remarkable turnaround and the new gaffer has yet to lose any of his 14 games in charge, underlining what a shrewd appointment the Belgian has been.
Even injuries to key players haven't been able to disrupt Rangers since he took the reins and it would be a major surprise if St Johnstone halted their momentum at Ibrox.
Changing manager has also paid off for the Perth side with Craig Levein moving Saints off the foot of the table since replacing Steven MacLean last month.
St Johnstone have only lost twice in seven games since the former Scotland manager's arrival and those defeats came away to Hearts and at home to Celtic.
Saturday's one-nil win over Hibernian moved them up to eighth in the table but Saints can't afford to take their foot off the gas as they're still just two points clear of the relegation play-off slot.
How the bookies view it
It's no surprise to see Rangers as red-hot favourites and their best price is just 2/15 at Ladbrokes. St Johnstone are as big as 22/1 with William Hill and even the draw is hefty at 17/2 with Paddy Power.
Recent head to head
St Johnstone contributed to the downfall of Giovanni van Bronckhorst last season as they won 2-1 against Rangers in Perth. That has been their only success in the last eight meetings, with Rangers winning the other seven. Saints memorably won on penalties at Ibrox en route to lifting the Scottish Cup in 2021 but they haven't come out on top there in the league since 2017.
Players to watch
I'd imagine Clement will freshen things up a little after a draining 90 minutes on a heavy pitch at Hampden, Kemar Roofe could start after a few appearances off the bench and he's evens at Coral for anytime scorer.
St Johnstone's best chance of a goal will probably come from a set-piece and stopper Liam Gordon is a whopping 40/1 with Bet365 to shock Ibrox.
Anything else catch the eye?
I'd imagine Levein will set up to frustrate and St Johnstone have only conceded more than one goal in just one of their last six outings. Our man Mark cashed in by backing Rangers corners on Sunday as Aberdeen used similar tactics so it could pay to back a repeat. You have to go to Rangers -6 in the corner handicap to get to 13/10 at Unibet while over five first-half corners looks good at 20/21 with Bet365.
St Johnstone's Daniel Phillips is usually good value for a card and he has picked five yellows in just 13 appearances this term. The Englishman has kept his nose clean for the last four games so is due a card and that pays 9/5 with Paddy Power.
There could be a bit of a hangover for Rangers after Sunday's party and Saints haven't been conceding a lot of goals since Levein took over. That makes a Rangers win with under 3.5 goals worth a punt at 21/20 with BetVictor.
This Scottish Premiership match between Rangers and St Johnstone will be played on Dec 20, 2023 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Rangers vs St Johnstone prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
