Rangers must win against Hearts on Wednesday night if they to stay in touching distance of Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic.
The Light Blues put in a poor performance last weekend, falling to a shock 2-1 defeat against St. Johnstone. The loss leaves the Gers seven points behind Celtic in top spot, and defeat on Wednesday could prove a big result in the Scottish Premiership title race. Giovanni van Bronckhorst's side last faced Hearts on October 1, with goals from Alfredo Morelos, Ryan Kent and a brace Antonio Colak handing the Ibrox men a 4-0 win at Tynecastle Park. John Souttar, Filip Helander, Kemar Roofe, Ridvan Yilmaz, Ianis Hagi and Tom Lawrence are all guaranteed absentees for Wednesday.
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The fan pressure is mounting on the Dutchman after recent results and performances ahead of hosting the Jambos at Ibrox later tonight. So, could Rangers pick up a win against Hearts? We used FIFA 23 to try and predict the score. To complete this simulation, we used FIFA 23 and updated the Rangers squad with the latest injuries and suspensions.
Rangers vs Hearts score predicted by simulation
We predict that Rangers could set up in a 4-3-3 formation, with their line-up as follows: McGregor; Tavernier, King, Davies, Barisic; Lundstram, Davis, Arfield; Kent, Colak, Matondo.
We predict that the visitors could set up in a 4-1-4-1 formation, with their line-up as follows: Gordon; Atkinson, Sibbick, Rowles, Cochrane; Devlin; Ginnelly, Snodgrass, Halliday, McKay; Shankland.
Rangers were quick out the blocks and they took the lead after just five minutes, with Colak firing the Gers in front. Rabbi Matondo picked up the ball on the left and cut into the middle early, threading a pass into the feet of Colak just inside the box.
As Colak picked up the ball with his back to goal, the striker turned whilst holding off his marker and powered a fantastic strike into the top corner. The perfect start for the Light Blues, but just four minutes later, Lawrence Shankland equalised when he headed a corner past Allan McGregor at his near post.
After the game was drawn level, Rangers fell off the pace as the visitors took control. Shankland grabbed his second minutes later with a curling effort from outside the box, and Hearts then made it 3-1 just before half-time when Robert Snodgrass broke into the box and rolled his effort under McGregor.
Hearts were taking full advantage of a poor Rangers performance, and just before the hour mark, Shankland grabbed his hat trick as the 27-year-old tapped a cross through the legs of McGregor from close range. In an effort to get back into the game Rangers introduced Alfredo Morelos, and the striker scored almost instantly to make it 4-2 with 20 to go.
Lundstram picked up the ball just outside the box with options ahead of him, and the midfielder did well to chip a pass over the Hearts defence and into the path of Morelos. The striker trapped the ball to hold possession before firing past the 'keeper to give the Gers a glimmer of hope.
A period of dominance saw Rangers come close on multiple occasions, but the Light Blues couldn't find a way past Craig Godron who was having a good game in goal. With three minutes to go, Morelos got on the scoresheet again, setting up an interesting end to the clash at the Ibrox.
Now on the left, Ryan Kent curled a cross into Morelos, and despite the ball falling just behind the striker, Morelos did well to control the pass with his chest and keep the chance alive. As the ball dropped down, the Colombian swivelled to open up his body for the shot, and he arrowed his shot across goal and into the far corner for 4-3. It was too little too late for Rangers though as they fell to a 4-3 defeat.
FIFA 23 predicted final score: Rangers 3-4 Hearts
Here are the full-time match stats.
FIFA 23 predicts that Rangers' poor recent form could continue on Wednesday evening, with this simulation suggesting that the Gers could be taken apart by Hearts should their performance not be up to scratch. If van Bronckhorst's side were to lose and Celtic were to win, a 10-point gap would open up between the two sides, putting even more pressure on the position of the manager. (edited)
What do you think the score will be between Rangers and Hearts on Wednesday? Let us know in the comments!
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