Rangers face off against third-placed Aberdeen at Ibrox on Sunday - two weeks after the Dons beat Michael Beale‘s side at Pittodrie.
Both teams head into the clash in contrasting form with the Light Blues still licking their wounds after suffering a narrow Scottish Cup semi-final defeat to Celtic last weekend, with Barry Robson’s Reds arrive in Govan boasting an impressive seven-game winning streak.
While Celtic will almost certainly secure the Scottish Premiership title over the coming weeks, regardless of what Rangers do between now and the end of the season, Beale will be looking for a strong performance from his players as they aim to finish the campaign by building a feel-good factor heading into a summer rebuild.
The Gers currently trail the league leaders by 13 points and has struggled to make any inroads since returning from the World Cup break and although they are 26 points clear of Aberdeen in the table, they will be more concerned about the gap between them and their arch rivals, who has lost just once domestically all season.
Sunday’s match will provide Beale with an opportunity to give some much-needed minutes to several fringe players. Ridvan Yilmaz, Scott Arfield and Rabbi Matondo are three candidates pressing hard for a starting berth, with the latter impressing from off the bench in recent weeks after a lengthy spell out injured.
Welshman Matondo has flattered to deceieve since arriving at Ibrox last summer, while Turkish international Yilmaz has also been plagued by injury problems and has failed to seriously challenge Borna Barisic for the left-back spot. However, it’s now time for both players to step up and prove their worth to the Londoner who has already outlined plans to re-shape his squad.
With loanee Malik Tillman returning to Bayern Munich this week for treatment on a season-ending hamstring injury, and with Antonio Colak still struggling for fitness, Beale will need to re-shuffle his attacking options.
Here, we predict how Rangers will line-up against the Dons at Ibrox:
1. Allan McGregor - GK
Beale’s undisputed No.1 is likely to bow out this summer and will want to finish his career with a few clean sheets.
2. James Tavernier
The captain’s dismal record against Celtic continued last weekend but the full-back will be determined to bounce back against the Dons.
3. Connor Goldson - RCB
Made his return to the side at Hampden after a recent injury absence. His presence in central defence has been missed hugely.
4. Ben Davies - LCB
The ex-Liverpool man has toiled a bit in recent weeks but Beale kept the faith in him against Celtic and is expected to be given the nod over Souttar again.