Popular Post pete 2,499 Posted April 13, 2018 Popular Post Share Posted April 13, 2018 On Sunday Rangers will play one of their most important games of the season. We travel to Hampden park for the Scottish cup semi-final against our old rivals Celtic. With the league virtually out of our reach the season could only really be called a success if we could lift the Scottish cup. Just a few weeks ago we were so full of confidence that we could beat Celtic in the league and were actually well on top of them when they went down to ten men. That was it we thought. With a man advantage we would charge on to victory and put us right back in the race to win the league title. Nothing could have been further from the reality as Rangers seemed to lose all shape and it was Celtic who got the winning goal. Instead of fighting for the League title a further loss against Kilmarnock and a draw at Motherwell has actually put us in a three horse battle for the second spot with Hibs and Aberdeen, going in to the last five game split. On Sunday the players get the chance to redeem themselves. This will be some of the players last chance to win some silverware so hopefully they will bring their A game to the table. While Celtic are the bookies red hot favourites, this is a one game effort and as we all know in an old firm derby all form goes out of the window. It is who stands up to be counted on the day. The last time we met them in the cup at Hampden we went on to beat them in a penalty shoot-out. Of course the grass that day was of a masonic cultivation as Rogic' s standing leg pushed up the turf and he ballooned the ball over the bar to put Rangers into the final. The less said about the final the better. Celtic will most likely start with a 4-2-3-1 with Scott Brown and Nitcham playing deeper and Forest Rogic and Armstrong\McGregor giving them the forward push. Dembele will be the lone striker They call Scott Brown the Lego eater but to be honest given his intelligence I don't think he got past the Duplo stage. He can however command the midfield and giving him the space and time to run the game will be suicide as we saw at Ibrox three weeks ago when they went down to ten men. So how can we set up to combat in the vital midfield area. One thing is certain we cannot face it with a two man midfield of Docherty and Dorrans. We need that third man in there and in a perfect world I would love to see young McCrorie in the midfield. Unfortunately when you look at our defence, can we afford to leave Alves and Martin as our main centre-backs? That would certainly leave us short of pace and the inclination to lie deeper which would virtually scuttle the early pressing game. Alves has probably been the biggest disappointment to Rangers supporters who were expecting a world beater. In all honesty he looks more like a carpet beater. Yes, he wins everything in the air but I still can't remember him making a decent tackle. We all know Celtic will not be punting high balls up to Dembele to combat Alves in the air. With David Bates being injured the only other name on offer is Fabio Cardoso. He has had next to no game time with his last game being when he came on for Bates.against Celtic and played a big part in poor defending for the third goal. With McCrorie sitting in front of the defence it would mean that a lot of balls would be mopped up in the midfield though. Murty certainly has a difficult decision to make. We could of course go for a far more defensive plan and sit deeper and put the fit again Windass up as a loan striker to use his pace on the break. The Celtic defenders would certainly love not getting beaten up by Morelos but they are also not the quickest defenders out there and the speed of Windass may upset them more than the battering of Morelos and that also offers up the chance to play a five man midfield keeping our two wide players. We would be giving away territory but that would give us far more room to break into. It would also give far more room for Tavernier and John to break into This could be a line up in that situation Foderingham Tavernier Martin Alves John McCrorie Goss\Holt\ Halliday Candeias Dorrans Murphy Windass I doubt that Murty will change that much and fully expect Kenny Miller to be playing around Morelos. I really hope he shores up the midfield but I am afraid it will be more of the same. He may put in Halliday or Holt for Docherty but that is about the only change I see on the cards I think his team will be. Foderingham Tavernier Martin McCrorie John Candeias Docherty Dorrans Murphy Miller Morelos As I said the favourites do not always win and below is one of the greatest examples of that. 8 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
der Berliner 3,743 Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Can't see us going anywhere with Docherty and Dorrans in midfield. Did not work for three games on the trott, why should it work this time about? Windass? I'd be satisfied if he's on the bench to be used later as an attacking option. He was absolutely no use in the creative department after he scored against the Yahoos, nor in the games thereafter. IMHO, we have a chance to get a result against them if we hit them where they are weakest, in defence. Trying to contain their attacking threat will most likely only see wave after wave of Yahoo attacks ... and they have the players to hurt us where the likes of Motherwell and Dundee have failed. Use the Hampden pitch and have a go at them from the off. No one-striker rubbish, which will let them have it their way with Morelos. Likewise, our wingers /wingbacks need to track back hard. Foderingham Tavernier - Martin - Alves - John McCrorie Holt/Docherty - Miller - Murphy Morelos - Cummings I'd bet my bottom Euro that Murty will keep the same line-up from the last games though, with McCrorie going into central defence in place of Alves. On a wee sidenote. Should we actually do it, I would suggest our line-up for the game at the Scumhut in a few weeks time. We need to give our second string and less-utilized players an outing and some much needed practise too, you see ... Kelly Hodson - Cardoso - A. Wilson - Wallace O'Halloran - Rossiter - Dalcio - Dodoo Herrera - Cummings 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rousseau 10,602 Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 I'm on publishing duties this week, so that's it published, Pete. https://www.gersnet.co.uk/index.php/news-category/match-analysis/899-match-preview-celtic-v-rangers-redemption I agree that there will probably be very few changes, if any; I think with Windass fit (or if he's fit?) we could see the same team as the last meeting. Like you said, the best team doesn't always win these games. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unicorn 206 Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 (edited) Favourites usually win though. How many times did they beat us in the 90’s for example? Rangers are around 3/1 with most bookies which is probably about right. We have overcome those odds before, most notably when we stopped them winning the league at Ibrox in 2012, but I can’t see it this time. I dearly hope I’m wrong but the defeat last month was very sobering. Edited April 13, 2018 by Unicorn 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gonzo79 15,292 Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 I think we've got no chance on Sunday. It'll be another weak display and we'll probably concede a few. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cooponthewing 1,139 Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 I like your team Pete and I would go with it too. It’s 2 banks of 4 or 4-5-1? I pretty certain Murty will start Miller. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ian1964 10,721 Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 We should have beat them at Ibrox, bad defending for their 3 goals, Morelos missed a sitter and also had a great chance to score before that 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
buster. 5,185 Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 If we want a different outcome I think we need to chaange the way we go about things. I think we have to make it difficult for them to play, protect our central defence via a sitter (McCrorie) and make the midfield as solid as possible. I made a point of watching part of the Hamilton v Celtic game last weekend and they were dismal in the last third, haven't been scoring that many goals of late and wouldn't find a well organised defence easy to create against. Don't worry too much if we aren't making too many chances aslong as they don't score and become more adventurous in the last half hour. And although we want to win, remember, we don't need to win this game to go through (penalties are possible). I'd like to go through and I don't care if it takes 'boring football' to do it. --------------------- No passengers allowed so Windass, if fit, can take a seat on the bench. As can Goss. I'd consider Holt, Haliday and Miller. Players who have already put celtic out of the Cup, know what the fixture is about and work hard at the parts of the game that will be necessary. I'd drop Docherty for this one (celtic will target it him with an immediate press because his distribution has been poor at times). 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rousseau 10,602 Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 34 minutes ago, buster. said: If we want a different outcome I think we need to chaange the way we go about things. I think we have to make it difficult for them to play, protect our central defence via a sitter (McCrorie) and make the midfield as solid as possible. I made a point of watching part of the Hamilton v Celtic game last weekend and they were dismal in the last third, haven't been scoring that many goals of late and wouldn't find a well organised defence easy to create against. Don't worry too much if we aren't making too many chances aslong as they don't score and become more adventurous in the last half hour. And although we want to win, remember, we don't need to win this game to go through (penalties are possible). I'd like to go through and I don't care if it takes 'boring football' to do it. --------------------- No passengers allowed so Windass, if fit, can take a seat on the bench. As can Goss. I'd consider Holt, Haliday and Miller. Players who have already put celtic out of the Cup, know what the fixture is about and work hard at the parts of the game that will be necessary. I'd drop Docherty for this one (celtic will target it him with an immediate press because his distribution has been poor at times). I don't get how you can drop players for inferior players, just because they've 'done it before'? It was actually a draw, where we played with backs against the wall and they took shot after shot at our goal. It wasn't great; our last game against them was better. I don't mind the tactical shift to a deep block -- not a bad idea, and it could work -- but, for me, Holt, Miller and, to a lesser extent Halliday, don't provide the best options for that; Docherty and Goss are actually better suited in that sense, as they are tougher in the tackle, can carry the ball (Docherty) and control the ball in tight quarters and pass it accurately (Goss) when we break. Windass is unsuited for this too -- unless he's playing up front. I'd prefer a high pressing game though; which would require Windass and Docherty -- even Holt, but you know how I feel about him -- but not a Goss. It's amazing how some players seem to become world-beaters once they've been out of the team for a while! 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
buster. 5,185 Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 1 minute ago, Rousseau said: I don't get how you can drop players for inferior players, just because they've 'done it before'? It was actually a draw, where we played with backs against the wall and they took shot after shot at our goal. It wasn't great; our last game against them was better. I don't mind the tactical shift to a deep block -- not a bad idea, and it could work -- but, for me, Holt, Miller and, to a lesser extent Halliday, don't provide the best options for that; Docherty and Goss are actually better suited in that sense, as they are tougher in the tackle, can carry the ball (Docherty) and control the ball in tight quarters and pass it accurately (Goss) when we break. Windass is unsuited for this too -- unless he's playing up front. I'd prefer a high pressing game though; which would require Windass and Docherty -- even Holt, but you know how I feel about him -- but not a Goss. It's amazing how some players seem to become world-beaters once they've been out of the team for a while! IMO Sunday is more about an effective collective (team) set-up in a specific way, than the merits of individuals. Mentality, commitment and desire also play a huge part in these games and have to be considered. On a messageboard, rather than at the training sessions makes it only 'gut guesswork' and we'll soon enough see what actually transpires. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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