Scottish Premiership 2023/24: Rangers vs Celtic – breaking down both sides’ significant strengths and weaknesses – tactical preview

The first Old Firm Derby of the 2023/24 campaign will take place tomorrow, with Rangers playing hosts to Celtic at Ibrox. The stage is set for an enticing encounter for Brendan Rodgers’ first major test since returning to Parkhead back in June, though his second Hoops tenure has been far from smooth sailing thus far.

Rodgers’ side are currently goalless in two games, with Kilmarnock eliminating them from the Scottish League Cup a fortnight ago before they were held to a draw by St. Johnstone at Celtic Park last week.

Still leading the Scottish Premiership, they’ll be keen to put the last couple of weeks behind them and set the tone for the campaign by overcoming Michael Beale’s Gers tomorrow.

Turning our attention to the other half of Glasgow, Rangers come into this game directly off the back of a heavy UEFA Champions League playoff defeat to Eredivisie’s PSV Eindhoven — they were defeated 7-3 over two legs but lost 5-1 in Wednesday’s decisive clash.

Derek McInnes’ Kilmarnock also have a victory over Rangers to their name in 2023/24, after they defeated the Gers 1-0 in their Premiership opener back in early-August. As a result of this, Michael Beale’s side currently trail the Hoops by a point as we approach Sunday’s game.

Neither of the two Glasgow goliaths have been majorly convincing so far this season and Sunday’s game is one that really could end up going either way, with both of these teams displaying some notable weaknesses that the other could target already in the 2023/24 campaign.

We’ll aim to highlight those weaknesses along with both teams’ respective strengths in this tactical piece previewing Sunday’s derby. Our analysis will dive into some aspects of both sides’ strategy and tactics that we predict will end up being crucial in deciding this contest. So, let’s get into the analysis, then!

Rangers’ strengths

We’ll start by focusing on both sides’ respective strengths, beginning with the hosts, Rangers. Beale’s side currently boast the lowest xGA (1.76) in Scotland’s top-flight, while also conceding the joint-lowest (one) in terms of actual goals too.

Indeed, as you might imagine based on this information, Rangers’ defensive setup has been extremely solid thus far in the 2023/24 campaign and stands as one of their major strengths heading into Sunday’s clash.

They’ve conceded marginally more xG from the right than the left but both sides are fairly similar in terms of chances conceded — and very low, with very few shots conceded from high-value areas.

Beale typically sets his side up in a 4-3-3 shape off the ball in domestic competition, though they lined up in more of a 4-4-2 versus PSV and both are viable options worth considering for the derby game.

Rangers