Rangers delivered an emphatic and thoroughly dominant performance to beat Celtic 3-0 at Ibrox on Sunday, booking their place in the semi-finals of the Premier Sports Cup and handing Derek McInnes the perfect result on his first Old Firm derby as manager. A superb double from captain Dan Neil, sandwiched around a thumping half-volley from Kevin Kelsy, left Martin O’Neill’s side well beaten and chasing answers for large parts of the afternoon, as 50,000 home supporters roared their team into a last-four meeting with Aberdeen.
The scale of the victory could hardly have been more significant for McInnes, who has overseen a sharp upturn in Rangers’ form and results in recent weeks following a difficult start to the season. With no away fans present at Ibrox under this season’s Old Firm ticketing restrictions, the home end was in full voice throughout, roared on by a performance that finally saw the club deliver in exactly the kind of high-pressure occasion that has so often eluded them in recent years.
For a manager who has been open about the idea that trophies, and specifically results against Celtic, would ultimately define his time at Ibrox, Sunday’s win represented a significant marker of progress. It came just a week after the club’s technical director departed and amid a lengthy list of first-team absentees, circumstances that made the manner of the victory all the more striking.
O’Neill made the surprising decision to hand Sam Johnstone the goalkeeping jersey ahead of Viljami Sinisalo, and the summer arrival looked uncomfortable from the very first whistle. It quickly became apparent that Celtic had not anticipated how Rangers intended to set up, and the visitors were punished relentlessly as a result.
The opening goal arrived after 23 minutes, when Ryan Naderi did well to find Kelsy, who in turn laid the ball off into the path of Neil, completely unmarked just outside the penalty area. The Rangers captain’s finish into the corner was clinical, giving the hosts a deserved lead and setting the tone for the rest of the afternoon.
Rangers barely eased off from there. Kelsy doubled the advantage in the 59th minute, drifting to the back post before firing a superb effort in off the near post for his first goal in a Rangers shirt. Emmanuel Fernandez then thought he had made it three when he headed home, only to be flagged offside and have the goal chalked off. It mattered little in the end, as Neil struck again in the 75th minute, gathering possession and curling a beautiful effort beyond Johnstone into the top corner to send Ibrox into raptures and confirm a thoroughly one-sided scoreline.
For McInnes, the performance represented everything he could have asked for from his players on the day. His tactical approach appeared spot on throughout, and his side looked drilled and prepared for exactly what would be required to overcome their fiercest rivals. The intensity Rangers showed from the first whistle was unmistakable, and their gameplan proved effective, with the players clearly willing to take risks and back themselves in individual battles all over the pitch.
It was precisely the kind of high-profile occasion that Rangers have repeatedly fallen short in during recent seasons, and reversing that trend so emphatically, in front of a jubilant home support, offers a significant psychological boost heading into the rest of the campaign. The win also opens up a genuine opportunity for silverware, with Rangers now through to the last four of the Premier Sports Cup and preparing to travel to Celtic Park for a league fixture against the same opponents the following weekend.
Individually, there were strong performances throughout the Rangers side, but it was Neil who stood out above all others. Having arrived at the club as a relatively unproven quantity on the biggest stage Scottish football has to offer, the captain rose to the occasion in spectacular fashion, scoring both ends of a man-of-the-match display that will live long in the memory of the home supporters who watched it unfold
For all that Rangers deserve credit for their tactical approach and execution, the gulf in quality and application between the two sides was stark throughout the afternoon. Celtic were second best in almost every department, and early errors handed Rangers considerable encouragement that the visitors were simply never able to recover from.
O’Neill had spoken before the match about the character within his squad, but too many of his players appeared to disappear from the contest once things became difficult, a marked contrast to how Celtic have typically performed in domestic fixtures of this magnitude in recent seasons. The team selection also came in for scrutiny, with Camilo Duran found wanting on the right and Sebastian Tounekti largely ineffective down the left-hand side.
The decision to leave Haissem Hassan out of the starting lineup raised eyebrows before kick-off, and those doubts only grew as the match progressed without his introduction. When he was eventually brought on at half-time, he struggled to make any meaningful impact on proceedings. Johnstone, too, endured an uncomfortable afternoon between the posts, unable to inspire any confidence in a defence that was repeatedly cut open by Rangers’ movement and incision.
Neither the club’s new signings nor its more experienced faces were able to make a difference, and the overall level of performance from Celtic was described as startlingly poor given the context of the fixture and the strength of the group O’Neill has assembled. Having largely earned their league wins so far this season without necessarily needing to excel, Celtic were given a sharp and painful lesson at Ibrox, one that leaves O’Neill needing a big response over the coming week, both in Europe and in the return league fixture against Rangers at Celtic
Speaking to BBC Scotland after the match, McInnes said it was exactly the performance and result his side had been looking for, adding that the occasion had demanded a big effort from his players and that they had delivered. He pointed to the fact that his squad remains a young one, and felt that experiencing first-hand just how much victories of this magnitude mean to the Rangers support would prove valuable for their continued development.
O’Neill, for his part, was candid in his assessment of the defeat, acknowledging that his side had been well beaten and that the scoreline did not flatter Rangers in the slightest. He conceded that Celtic had actually been competitive for periods of the first half, including at the interval, but ultimately felt Rangers had been the stronger side on the day and fully deserved the win. He also pointed to missed opportunities on the counter-attack in the first half as a source of particular frustration, noting that his side had given the ball away in promising positions on three or four occasions when well-placed to create danger of their own.
The eventual scoreline of 3-0 reflected the balance of play across the 90 minutes, with Rangers leading 1-0 at half-time before pulling clear in the second half through Kelsy and Neil’s second. In front of a crowd of 51,212, entirely made up of home supporters given the away-fan restrictions in place for all Old Firm fixtures this season, Rangers were able to fully capitalise on the atmosphere and occasion, using the backing of their own fans to great effect throughout.
The result also arrives at a significant moment for both clubs domestically. For Rangers, progression to the semi-finals sets up a clash with Aberdeen for a place in the final at Hampden Park, while for Celtic, the manner of the defeat brings their perfect start to the domestic campaign to an abrupt and chastening end, ensuring O’Neill’s side will need to regroup quickly ahead of continued action on both the European and domestic fronts in the days that follow
Sunday’s result carries significance well beyond the immediate context of a single cup quarter-final. For McInnes, delivering such a comprehensive win in his first Old Firm derby in charge offers concrete evidence that his methods and message are beginning to resonate with his players, following a difficult opening block of fixtures that had included exits from Europe and a shaky start to the league campaign. Having previously stressed that both his own future and those of his players would ultimately be judged on the club’s ability to deliver silverware, McInnes now has genuine momentum behind a push for further success this season.
For Celtic and O’Neill, the challenge now is to respond quickly and decisively. A trip to Ibrox followed by a rematch against the same opponents at Celtic Park just a week later represents an unusually direct and immediate opportunity for redemption, and how O’Neill’s side respond to Sunday’s chastening afternoon is likely to say a great deal about the character and resilience of his squad heading into the remainder of the season. With European commitments also on the horizon in the days ahead, the Celtic manager faces a demanding week in which questions over selection, application and overall performance levels will need to be addressed head-on if his side are to avoid a prolonged dip in form following their first domestic defeat of
Both clubs now turn their attention to the week ahead, with Rangers preparing for their Premier Sports Cup semi-final against Aberdeen at Hampden Park, and both sides gearing up for their Scottish Premiership meeting at Celtic Park next Sunday. Given the emphatic nature of Sunday’s result, that follow-up fixture takes on even greater significance, offering Celtic an immediate chance to respond on home turf, and Rangers an opportunity to build further on the platform established by such a statement win at Ibrox.
For now, though, Sunday belongs to Rangers, McInnes and, above all, Dan Neil, whose outstanding display on the biggest domestic stage in Scottish football has given Ibrox a result and a performance that few in attendance are likely to forget any time soon.
