Kenny Dalglish says title foes' off-field issues could affect them as Celtic fixture looms

By David Walton

March 27, 2022

Celtic great Kenny Dalglish has stated that Rangers’ embarrassing off-field issues could come back to bite them ahead of next week’s Glasgow derby.

As Ange Postecoglou’s men go into the game unified, there’s been plenty of bickering between our rivals and their support base. Rangers fans showed their anger with the club’s Sydney Cup participation at Dens Park when they threw tennis balls onto the pitch and got the game stopped.

Rangers then released a statement hammering their supporters and accusing them of not putting the football first. All this in the midst of a gripping title race that’s racing towards an incredible climax one way or another.

And as Dalglish reflected on it in his weekly Sunday Post column, he believes Rangers could see a negative effect on the pitch if it keeps going:

“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.

“The situation looks as though it could run and run for a while, but they all need to find a way to call a truce, and park their differences until the end of the season. It’s going to be an exciting end to the campaign, and Rangers are in the running for three trophies. The focus should be on that, and everyone should be 100% behind Giovanni van Bronckhorst and his players.

“If the arguing between the board and the fans continues, it could very well bite, and cause damage to what happens on the pitch. As soon as possible, everyone connected with the Ibrox club needs to start showing togetherness.”

Celtic must block out the noise at Lennoxtown regardless of the temptations

It’s certainly timely for us to see Rangers getting into arguments with their supporters. No doubt it’ll lead to their players feeling a touch nervy, especially if they’re struggling in games.

If Celtic take the lead at Ibrox, their support will swiftly turn on their team given they’ll be able to see their season fading away from them. But as sweet as that would be, we have to acknowledge that it’s still vital we enter the match in the right head-space.

Celtic simply need to block out the noise. It’ll be difficult considering if the bickering continues over the next week it’ll be a hot talking point in Scottish football. But our best way of emerging victorious is if our players don’t assume that it’ll lead to an easier day at the office.

It’s still Ibrox we’re visiting. We haven’t won there since September 2019. A place we’ve constantly been frustrated at over the last 3 years. Regardless of how they approach the game, we simply need to concentrate on our own.

Make no mistake, it’s all set up very nicely for the Hoops. No injury worries from the international games so far and the club as unified as it’s been for a long time. We couldn’t be in a better position on the field and off it whilst Rangers appear to be struggling for harmony and performances.

We’ll see what happens on the day as we know not to get too carried away when it comes to this fixture. But all isn’t well at Ibrox, and that’s just a fact.

In other news, Celtic’s Giorgos Giakoumakis deserves his Glasgow derby spot regardless of Kyogo talk