I think ,if fit , whitty bocanegro goian papac ortiz davis mcculloch edu lafferty jelavic and of course mcgregor. This is not my choice, but the likely starters.
posted on 14/9/11
Im not a massive fan of Whittaker but im not sure we have a better option. McMillan has only played once really for Rangers so not sure hes suited to such a game and if the alternative is Broadfoot then I think I prefer Whittaker. I really hope he doesnt play Ortiz, im not writing him off this early but what iv seen of him an old firm game isnt suited to him at this stage. With Izzaguire out its a chance to test Celtic on that side and Naismith would be far more effective IMO.
posted on 14/9/11
i hope on our side we line up, lurch, el bad, matthews, m wilson, chuck, ledley, kayal, ki, forrest, stokes, hoops.
if stokes isn't fit then bangura
broony usually does ok in these games but i wouldn't change last weeks midfield
posted on 14/9/11
Smid
Mcmillan may not be ready for an old firm,but he looked the part when I saw him..........one for the future.The old firm may bring out the best in McMillan.
Do we have to drop Wallace then,to play Whit,Boca,Goian and Papac?
Whitt over bigfoot as you say,everytime.
Agree about Ortiz actually,as although better on the right at last,he has little pace and not the best so far.Middle of Naisy,Davis,Edu and Wylde maybe,but doubt Ally agrees.
posted on 14/9/11
Pol - Would you go with Forrest ahead of Brown? I heard he was excellent last week but looking in I think from a Rangers fans point of view id prob be quite glad to see Forrest play instead of Brown. Hes more direct and creative but these games dont always suit such types and id imagine he would struggle to get the better of Papac. Brown offers a different type of option from the right, but then the problem is if you have Brown on the right and Ledley on the left maybe its too square and theres no one to get in behind or take men on and get crosses in from wide areas?
posted on 14/9/11
I liked McMillan when I saw him too and he probably gives better defensive cover than Whittaker. However at Motherwell I felt he struggled in the first half and got a booking as a result of getting caught out. Celtic is a bigger step up from Motherwell and an old firm game is as big as they come, so id probably be more inclined to play Whittaker. He did recover to have a good second half that day but on Sunday he wont get the same chance.
posted on 14/9/11
Whittaker it is then Smid.........you have convinced me.We need to give McMillan a run to gain experience and confidence in the future though.
Can't wait for Sunday to see how good,or bad,we are against them.
posted on 14/9/11
Absolutely mate, I just hope we come out the traps flying and up for it rather than sitting back and letting them settle. The crowd will be right up for it with everything thats gone on so the players should take advantage of that and start at a good pace.
posted on 14/9/11
It is a cliche,but going at them is always the best way to play Celtic imo.
Sitting back and playing slow build ups usually sees quick Celtic teams catching us on the hop,especially last year with a slowish,ageing defence.Felt sorry for Weir getting turned and skinned in some old firm games,although not all of them.
posted on 14/9/11
smid i agree with the square midfield you're alluding to but imo walter smith always played midfielders who would first and foremost trackback. i'd rather break that mould cos teams teams seem to be more interested nowadays in how a player can counter his opponent rather than get the upper hand on him and run the game.
wee forrest for me is made for this game cos there's always room down the flanks and much as i like broony he'll play the ball square or back to keep it safe.
if you asked your strikers i'm obviously thinking of hoops for ours then i'm positive he'd want the wee man in the team
i predict a 2-2 draw
posted on 15/9/11
Are celtic likely to go one up top? Is stokes fit? Don't want to predict it but could be few goals in this game if the midfields are crowded although it stands to reason as how many times have we seen old firms won in midfield battles. Just as long as there is no ortiz, wylde gets a run out and Davis plays through thr middle I'm happy.