As the excitement builds for the Premier Sports Cup final this weekend, Kenny Miller, a unique figure in Scottish football known for representing both Celtic and Rangers, has voiced his concerns about the Light Blues' chances against their fierce rivals.
Miller, who has experienced the intensity of the Old Firm from both sides, believes that Celtic enter the match as the clear favourites.
He points to Brendan Rodgers' impressive record in derby matches, noting towards the fact that the Celtic manager has suffered just one defeat in these high-pressure encounters, winning 15 of the 19 matches between the teams across his two tenures. This statistic underlines the challenge Rangers will face as they seek to retain the Scottish League Cup crown.
The 44-year-old also emphasised the wealth of experience within the Celtic squad. Many players have a proven track record of delivering in important domestic fixtures, which could be a decisive factor during the upcoming showdown.
While Rangers have clearly demonstrated recent improvement - evidenced by their frustration at only securing a draw against Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League on Thursday, extending their unbeaten streak to nine games - Miller remains skeptical about whether they can overcome Celtic in this crucial match and gain city bragging rights at Mount Florida on Sunday.
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“It will be a tight affair, they always are," the former Scotland striker told BetFred.
"Celtic have been better in terms of their performances in recent Old Firm games, but the results have been really, really tight and I can’t see this being any different. It could be won by the odd goal.
“I’d love to be confident and say a Rangers win, but this Celtic team are favourites for a reason and that’s not only due to the record the manager’s got, but they’ve also got more big game players and they’ve been proven in the fixture.
“There’s a lot of new players in this Rangers team, but could one of them step up and be the hero and score a cup final goal and be remembered forever?
"For either side, if you can score the winning goal, you’re going to be remembered forever, so what a chance this is for these Rangers players to step up to the plate and bring the trophy home.”
