As we look ahead to next weekend and Celtic visiting the Rangers for another huge game, Sir Kenny Dalglish has spoken out about the off field issues surrounding Ibrox at this point of time regarding a planned friendly against the Hoops away in Australia and how that could cause the side a problem on the pitch.
Dalglish has reflected on the situation of the Rangers, where the turmoil behind the scenes related to their involvement in Ange Postecoglou’s Homecoming Tour and the Sydney Super Cup has continued.
Dalglish believes that this could end up having an effect on the Rangers’ on-field performances, as their fans are clearly not happy with the decision to arrange a friendly against Celtic in Australia, where they are believed to be playing second fiddle to their Glasgow rivals.
Dalglish wrote in his column in The Sunday Post:
"It’s been quite a week at Ibrox, starting with the demonstrations at Dens Park, then on to the statements and arguments between the board and some of the club’s fan groups.It has not been very pleasant."
Dalglish further added about the situation:
"The team is still doing very, very well. But if the arguing between the board and the fans continues, it could very well bite, and cause damage to what happens on the pitch."
Rangers’ problems hands Celtic an advantage heading into the Glasgow Derby
As we approach next week’s critical game, with the Hoops on a long unbeaten run in the Premiership and leading their Glasgow rivals by 3 points in the league, they’ll be confident of their chances of getting a result away at Ibrox, something that they have not done since 2019.
While confusion reigns around Ibrox at the moment, Ange Postecoglou and his squad continue to prepare effectively for the match with players returning from injury and an almost full squad to select from.
There are certainly plenty of positives for the Hoops ahead of that next match. But at the same time, they cannot afford to get comfortable. Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side have shown in Europe that they are capable of getting a big result on their day and as a result, Celtic will have to be very careful. A defeat at Ibrox would wipe off their lead at the top.