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Celtic v Rangers
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Kick Off: Sunday 1st September at 12:30
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Competition: Scottish Premiership
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Watch Live: Sky Sports Main Event
Celtic and Rangers will contest the first Old Firm derby of the season at Celtic Park on Sunday afternoon. Brendan Rodgers’ side have made a perfect start to their Scottish Premiership title defence, winning each of their opening three league matches of the season. The Bhoys have also booked their place in the last eight of the Scottish League Cup following a 3-1 win over Hibernian.
As for Rangers, they dropped points in a 0-0 draw with Hearts on the opening day of the season, though they have since bounced back with a pair of wins in the league either side of a victory in the Scottish League Cup over St Johnstone. Despite their recent upturn in form, the Light Blues are as big as 5.0 to triumph at Parkhead.
Celtic v Rangers Best Bets
➡️ Celtic to win & over 1.5 goals @ 1.73 with Paddy Power
➡️ Celtic to score the first goal in the first half @ 1.73 with Paddy Power
Celtic are worthy favourites to claim top honours in Sunday’s Old Firm derby and backing Celtic to win and over 1.5 goals at 1.73 with Paddy Power looks a good choice.
The Bhoys have been blowing teams away with room to spare across the opening stretch of the season and they should prove too strong for their bitter rivals on Sunday. Each of Celtic’s four wins this season have featured two goals or more, as did their final 11 league wins of last season.
On top of this, this bet would have proven profitable in each of the last four Old Firm derbies at Parkhead. While Rangers will take confidence from their 6-0 success against Ross County last Saturday, facing the might of Celtic in their own backyard is a different kettle of fish, and Brendan Rodgers’ free-scoring side look well-placed to collect all three points.
Given how fast Celtic have been starting games this season, backing the Celtic to score the first goal of the first half at 1.73 with Paddy Power holds plenty of appeal. Brendan Rodgers’ side have been ferociously attacking their opponents from the first whistle this season, striking inside the opening 20 minutes in each of their four league and cup outings to date.
With the backing of a fervent home crowd, there is plenty of scope for the Hoops to repeat the trick on Sunday. Celtic scored the opening goal of the game in each of last season’s four Scottish Premiership Old Firm clashes, all of which arrived during the first half of the game. With that in mind, as well as Rangers being in a fragile state at present, the Bhoys look worth backing to draw first blood before the interval.
📂 Celtic v Rangers Cheat Sheet
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📊 Celtic Form and Stats
Celtic are in fine fettle heading into the first Old Firm derby of the season. After storming to the title with six straight victories at the end of last season, Brendan Rodgers’ side have carried that momentum into the new campaign.
The Hoops hit the ground running with a commanding 4-0 win over Kilmarnock and they have since claimed comfortable 2-0 and 3-0 wins at both Hibernian and St Mirren respectively. Celtic’s early season form is made all the more impressive by the fact that they have yet to concede a goal in three Scottish Premiership outings thus far, not to mention they have given up a mere three shots on target.
At the other end of the park, Celtic have racked up a staggering 72 attempts on goal across their opening three league games of the season, with a sizeable 28 of those efforts hitting the target.
The attacking intensity that Celtic are playing with at the moment has coincided with them scoring at least once in the opening 17 minutes of each of their four competitive outings this season so far. With a passionate Parkhead crowd behind them, expect Rodgers’ side to come flying out of the traps against Rangers on Saturday.
As was the case last season, Celtic have been prolific on the corner kick front across the opening three weeks of the Scottish Premiership season. The Bhoys have hit 10+ corners in two of their opening three league games.
After arriving on loan in January, Celtic striker Adam Idah relished the Old Firm occasion during the second half of last season. The Hoops hitman notched against Rangers in a 3-3 draw at Ibrox back in March before scoring a last-gasp-winner to settle the 2024 Scottish Cup final in May. Idah, who returned to Parkhead on a permanent basis earlier this month, is 2.3 to strike on Sunday.
It goes without saying that Old Firm encounters are highly pressurised situations which can often see tempers boil over and Sunday should be no different. Having been booked in three of the five dust-ups between the duo last season, Celtic captain Callum McGregor looks like a prime candidate for a card this weekend.
📊 Rangers Form and Stats
Having been held to a 0-0 draw by Hearts on the opening day of the season, as well as failing to overcome Dynamo Kiev in Champions League qualification, it would be fair to say Rangers have endured a rocky start to the season. However, a trio of domestic wins at their temporary Hampden home has helped steady the ship. Philippe Clement’s side saw off both Motherwell and St Johnstone before putting in their best performance of the season so far with a resounding 6-0 win over Ross County last Saturday.
The Light Blues dominated proceedings from start to finish against the Staggies, landing 17 shots on goal, nine of which hit the target.
Cyriel Dessers helped himself to two of those goals during that victory, taking his overall tally for the season to five across his six appearances. The much-maligned Nigerian striker scored what proved to be a consolation goal in a 2-1 defeat when Rangers last visited Celtic Park in May of this year. Dessers is 3.4 to grab a goal at Parkhead on Sunday.
James Tavernier provided an assist for one of Rangers’ six goals on Saturday and he also set up one of their two goals against Motherwell on matchday two. The Rangers skipper has struck five times across the last eight Scottish Premiership Old Firm derbies, though he has only been on the winning side once across that eight-game sample.
Fellow defender and new arrival Jefte received a red card in Rangers’ 2-0 defeat to Dynamo Kiev and he also picked up a yellow in his first Scottish Premiership start on Saturday against Ross County. The young Brazilian therefore merits consideration to tackle his way into trouble during Sunday’s Old Firm showdown.
One notable thing about Rangers on their two visits to Celtic Park last season was their lack of discipline, with Clement’s side finishing both of those particular games with 10 men.
⚔️ Celtic v Rangers Head-to-Head
Celtic will draw huge confidence from the fact that they have dominated this fixture in recent years. The two Glasgow giants crossed paths five times last season, with Celtic avoiding defeat on each occasion.
The Bhoys reigned supreme in four of the five derbies last term, including each of the two showdowns at Celtic Park. In doing so, Brendan Rodgers maintained his astonishing record in this fixture, with the Northern Irishman steering his side to 14 victories in 18 matches across his two spells in charge to date, losing just once in the process.
In contrast, Philippe Clement has yet to taste victory in this fixture in four attempts. The Rangers boss will be hoping to buck that trend this weekend as his side go in search of their first three points at Parkhead since October 2020.
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* I recommend waiting for confirmed team line-ups before placing any bets.
* All odds displayed correct at the time of publishing.
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