Rangers

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Former Scotland international Joelle Murray says call-offs in Steve Clarke's squad are "not ideal" although it "opens the door" for others to impress.

Torino's new signing Che Adams, Celtic pair Greg Taylor and James Forrest and Kilmarnock goalkeeper Robby McCrorie have all pulled out of Clarke's squad for the Nations League double-header against Poland on Thursday and Portugal on Sunday.

Though a direct replacement for striker Adams was not named, Rangers midfielder Connor Barron has received his first-call up, while left-back Josh Doig and goalkeeper Jon McCracken have also been drafted in.

Murray, who earned 48 caps and was part of the 2019 Women's World Cup squad, is hopeful Barron especially can grasp his opportunity.

"It seems like we're becoming accustomed with [call-offs] now," the former Hibernian defender said on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.

"I can't remember the last time a squad was named and we've gone with that squad, whether that's due to call-offs or various other reasons, so it's not ideal.

"Che Adams is certainly a big focal point within the group, but what it does bring is opportunities for Connor Barron, for Josh Doig, for the guys that have been brought in because for someone's disappointment, it opens a door for an opportunity for other players who have been in form, if we're talking about Connor Barron especially."

You can listen and subscribe to the Scottish Football Podcast here

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"The atmosphere at Ibrox has proven to help Rangers punch above their weight," says former striker Rory Loy as his old club prepare to return home later this month.

Phillipe Clement's side will host Dundee in the Scottish League Cup on 21 September, their first game at Ibrox this season, but with the Copland Stand closed.

Rangers have played four home games at Hampden, including their Champions League qualifying defeat to Dynamo Kyiv, because of delayed construction work at Ibrox.

And while former Rangers forward Loy admits there would be have been no guarantees of Champions League progress, he believes "the whole feel of the tie would have been different" had it been played at Ibrox.

"Everyone likes to play at their home stadium and that's not to say Rangers haven't had a string of decent enough results domestically at Hampden," Loy said on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.

"It's not really the point. Other than Ross County, they limped past St Johnstone and they limped past Motherwell.

"I don't think they were any great shakes, but as the season moves on, when you're at your home stadium, you've got your routine.

"You go to the stadium, there's things you like to do. You eat the same food, you go to the same places within the stadium, within the changing room, and you've got that kind of affinity with the place as well and the fans.

"Then you come out on a matchday and the atmosphere at Ibrox has been proven to help Rangers punch above their weight.

"So I'm not saying for a second they would have beaten Dynamo Kyiv if they'd played at Ibrox, but I just think the whole feel of the tie would have been different."

You can listen and subscribe to the Scottish Football Podcast here

Oli McBurnie says this summer was the first time in several years that Rangers had not been in touch about possibly signing him, but the 28-year-old Scotland striker would still love to play for the Ibrox club one day despite joining Las Palmas after leaving Sheffield United. (Open Goal), external

Rangers, Hull City and Preston North End were all talking with Heart of Midlothian in the final days of the summer transfer window about Lawrence Shankland but refused to meet the Edinburgh club's asking price in excess of £3m for the 28-year-old Scotland striker. (HITC), external

Blackburn Rovers manager John Eustace says Todd Cantwell was his number one target during the summer transfer window and that there was strong competition from other clubs for the 26-year-old English midfielder's purchase from Rangers. (Lancashire Telegraph), external

Scott Wright says leaving Rangers for Birmingham City was a "no brainer", despite their current League One status, because the 27-year-old Scottish winger believes in American owner Knighthead's ambition to reach the Premier League. (Birmingham Live), external

Romania centre-back Virgil Ghita says international team-mate Ianis Hagi is probably "angry" and "stressed" at his situation with Rangers, where the 25-year-old midfielder continues to train with the B team because manager Philippe Clement refuses to include him in his plans after no transfer could be agreed. (Daily Record), external

Read Wednesday's Scottish Gossip in full here.

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Rangers winger Rabbi Matondo, 23, could face weeks on the sidelines with the hamstring injury that led to his withdrawal from the Wales squad for their matches with Turkey and Montenegro. (Record), external

Romania forward Ianis Hagi, 25, is expected to reject the chance to leave Rangers for Bucharest side FCSB. (Football Insider), external

Rangers captain and right-back James Tavernier, 32, was linked with Besiktas and Trabzonspor and could yet move to Turkey, with the window open there until 18 September. (Sun), external

Read all of Tuesday's Scottish Gossip

Jamie Currie
Fan writer

I was delighted to get Oasis tickets. And that's as good as the weekend got.

Last week, I said Sunday's match would indicate where Rangers currently are. And, let's be honest, we are a million miles away.

But we all knew this was coming; I certainly did not expect a result at a place where we regularly go and crumble.

You could go over the three goals and pick out the multitude of mistakes made in there, or talk about a decent 10 minutes. But what really is the point?

It's like watching the same movie over and over. The same errors, the same goals conceded and quite frankly watching a Celtic team seemingly wanting it more is totally unacceptable.

That comes from the players and their lack of desire. If you go into these games lacking desire these results will happen, and we got what we deserved on Sunday - a tanking. Kris Boyd's rant on Sky Sports was spot on. It's embarrassing.

We haven't laid a glove on Celtic for a long time in terms of meaningful results. It feels like we won't do that for a while yet. Spare me the rebuild and young team chat. It doesn't wash. I've spoken about the manager not being backed in the market with quality additions, and on Sunday it was out there laid bare.

We had to cut the wage bill because of previous mismanagement by the board and Ross Wilson regarding recruitment and today it feels like we are back in pre-Gerrard days. I hope the board can sleep tonight because this shambolic state we are in both on and off the park is all their own doing.

As for the management and players, it's not good enough. We are into the blind faith stage that Rangers can come back from the international break and fall into some kind of winning run. It looks like things will get worse before they get better.

The only trophy it looks like we will be winning this year is the 'We significantly cut the wage bill' trophy. Maybe the chairman and co can sit that on their benches outside Edmiston House.

If you want to be ultra positive you could say this is short-term pain for long-term gain. Right now that long-term gain seems light years away.

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Rangers midfielder Connor Barron has received his first Scotland call-up.

The 22-year-old has been has been promoted from the Scotland Under-21s to a place in Steve Clarke's set-up for the Nations League double-header with Poland and Portugal.

Barron joined Rangers following the expiry of his Aberdeen contract in the summer and has played in each of the Ibrox side's first seven games this season.

His call-up comes after Che Adams, James Forrest, Robby McCrorie and Greg Taylor all dropped out.

Sassuolo left-back Josh Doig and Dundee goalkeeper Jon McCracken have been drafted in alongside Barron.

The midfielder will join clubmate John Souttar in Clarke's squad.

Rangers fans, we asked for your views after Sunday's 3-0 defeat to Celtic.

Here's what some of you had to say.

Anon: Rangers' biggest problem is a complete disconnect between the board/manger and the players. Changing the manager will alter nothing until there is a clear vision from the top and a strategy to implement that vision. What is the point of any football board? Surely it is to enable success on the park. This board don't do that and preside over a shambles.

Stuart: Embarrassing display with no heart and no leadership. James Tavernier cannot defend and is terrified of Daizen Maeda. It is time to drop Tavernier or at the very least take the captaincy off him and give it to someone who has a winning mentality. His record as Rangers captain is terrible.

Graham: The players didn't look motivated, particularly after the Celtic offside goal. It appears they knew they were up against better players, physically stronger, faster and gave up. The manager needs to take responsibility for this, his job is to make them think they are equal to any team.

Pete: After another very disappointing and embarrassing display at Parkhead, it is time for a new manager who knows Rangers and what it means to play for Rangers. It's time for someone like Barry Ferguson to be given an opportunity as he will at least ensure there is a bit of passion and guts in the team. And we still need a decent striker.

Sandra: The supporters shouting for Tavenier's head should be ashamed of themselves and have very short memories. That man has pulled us out of more trouble than any recent footballer ever has. Show more respect for a great Rangers player and remember there are another 10 men in the team.

Steve: Poor decisions at times but I take heart because we got at them (not often enough it has to be said) and created openings. Cyriel Dessers and Ross McCausland should have been on the scoresheet and poor decisions at other points cost us. I see green shoots of recovery and feel hopeful for the Ibrox game (or sooner if we get them in the cup). Onwards and upwards!

Robert: I think we as Rangers fans need to be realistic as painful as it is at the moment. We are back at a similar place to when Steven Gerrard took over, there’s been a huge change to the squad which will take time to settle, totally different from where Celtic are. Four of our starting 11 made their Old Firm debuts at Parkhead with only their fans. We will improve.

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Jack Butland says "the belief is there" at Rangers despite another sobering Old Firm defeat on Sunday.

Celtic were comfortable 3-0 winners at Parkhead in the first derby of the season, a result that leaves Philippe Clement's side fourth with an international break next up.

The loss also means the Ibrox side are five points behind their city rivals already at this early stage.

In the aftermath of the defeat, goalkeeper Butland said: "We've got a tricky period now where we don't have a game for a couple of weeks.

"That's going to be the difficult thing, we're going to be thinking about it for a long time. The next day we're in, it’s not going to just disappear. There’s no danger of that.

"It's going to be something that's going to be fresh on people's minds for a while. And it needs to be because that's how important it is to us and to the club.

"So, yes, there are things to work on, things to get better at, be more efficient. But I think the belief is there and I hope that shows at least that we're still fighting."

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Ex-Scotland midfielder Paul Lambert was left "shocked" at the "massive gulf" between his former side Celtic and Rangers in Sunday's Old Firm encounter.

The Parkhead club continued their derby dominance with a comprehensive 3-0 victory, which moves Brendan Rodgers' men five points clear of their city rivals after just four league games.

Lambert says Rangers "never matched Celtic in any department" and their display showed they "are way behind" the reigning Premiership champions.

Speaking on the BBC's Good Morning Scotland radio show, he added: "I thought Celtic were really comfortable but played some really, really good football.

"There's a massive pendulum swing towards Celtic at the minute and there's no way they're going to let that go.

"I was actually shocked at [the gap between them] because you expect Rangers to be strong. The non-negotiable in that game is you have to lay a marker down.

"Rangers never laid a glove. The recovery runs were poor. Tactically, I thought the defence played too deep. Celtic look more comfortable, dominant and you can tell there's a massive gulf."

Former Rangers winger Jamie Murphy believes manager Philippe Clement must find a new approach to Old Firm games.

Sunday's defeat at Celtic Park means the Belgian has now gone five matches without a victory in the derby.

Click here to listen to more weekend reaction on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.

Philippe Clement was involved in an angry exchange with Rangers supporters after they confronted the team manager after Sunday's Scottish Premiership defeat by Celtic. (Glasgow Times), external

Rangers centre-half Leon Balogun fronted up to fan fury at Ibrox Stadium as he stopped to speak with supporters after the derby defeat by Celtic. (The Herald), external

James Tavernier was confronted by a fuming Rangers fan who aimed an X-rated rant at the club captain as he was led away by Ibrox security following Sunday's Old Firm derby defeat. (Scottish Sun), external

Rangers goalkeeper Jack Butland says his side's showing in their 3-0 loss to Celtic was "sickening" as manager Philippe Clement's hoodoo in Old Firm derbies continued. (Daily Record), external

Celtic brought in £10.59m more in the summer transfer market than they spent, Aberdeen made a profit of £2.67m, Motherwell were up £1.34m and Heart of Midlothian £1.01m, but Hibernian spent £438,460 more than they brought in, while Rangers' net spend was £11.71m. (Edinburgh Evening News), external

Read Monday's Scottish Gossip in full here.

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Rangers manager Philippe Clement: "Losing 3-0 is very hard, but we didn't reward ourselves.

"We started as the best team, with two clear chances. You need to take these moments if you want to win Old Firm games.

"We are a young team, only just together. The starting XI of Celtic have a lot of experience together.

"We have a lot of things to work on - we know. We knew that before the game already. In that way, it's positive there were good signs in the way we started, but there are also lots of details to work on."

On bridging the gap: "By working hard and making things better. Financially we will not close it, so we need to work harder and better."

On mounting a title challenge: "I'm totally convinced of that. It's 34 games to go.

"Don't forget what happened last week. It was the best result in around four years for the club. It's not black and white - it's grey, maybe dark grey.

"Nobody wants to lose 3-0 but we need to take the right conclusions. The right conclusion is we should have made it 3-2 or 3-3 by being more efficient. They had four shots on target, we had four shots on target. There are a lot of things equal but not the result."

Celtic reinforced the recent Old Firm derby pattern with a routine Scottish Premiership win against Rangers.

Coming in as strong favourites and on their own patch, the champions withstood Rangers' spiky start before reasserting their familiar dominance.

Daizen Maeda guided in a close-range finish from Alistair Johnston's cross, as Rangers were manipulated all too easily from a throw-in.

By that point Kyogo Furuhashi had already had a goal ruled out for offside against Nicolas Kuhn, but the Japanese striker would soon add to his bulging derby tally with a precise finish from the edge of the box.

Rangers were fortunate not to be further behind by half-time and started the second period with more urgency, but Cyriel Dessers tamely shot at Kasper Schmeichel when a clinical finish was needed to reignite the contest.

Callum McGregor ended the contest with a belting finish from the edge of the box to move his side five points clear of their great rivals with only four league games played.

Where do Rangers go from here? Get in touch to share your views on another Old Firm defeat. Have your say here, external.

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Thomas Duncan, BBC Sport Scotland

If the familiar derby feel was comforting for Celtic, it is haunting for Rangers who have won just one of the last 12 meetings. And even that was a victory when the league was already lost.

After a purposeful start in which they harassed Celtic and occupied their centre-backs to allow space out wide, they folded after the disallowed goal.

Their discipline disappeared, as did the midfield three of Connor Barron, Mohamed Diomande, and Dujon Sterling. James Tavernier was again guilty of switching off at the back post as he lost another round of his ongoing bout with Maeda.

It wasn’t as if they didn’t have their moments. But as has been the case for an age, they couldn’t take them when they did arrive.

Philippe Clement has now failed to win his first five derbies, losing four, a record only matched by Rangers’ first ever manager William Wilton. The Belgian has emphasised the need for patience as he remoulds the squad with young players.

It is true he has been firefighting since walking in the door at Ibrox 10 months ago but there is still no sign of a clear style and gameplan. Rangers need to find one quickly or thin patience among some fans will disappear completely.

Rangers change two after their 6-0 victory over Ross County last Saturday for the trip to Celtic Park.

Philippe Clement is boosted by the return of centre-back Robin Propper, who replaces Leon Balogun.

The final switch sees Mohamed Diomande come in for Tom Lawrence.

New signing Neraysho Kasanwirjo is on bench, but there's no Nedim Bajrami will not be after his clearance was delayed.

• Follow the action

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Vaclav Cerny believes Rangers are "step-by-step" becoming the team manager Philippe Clement wants them to be.

It's been a difficult start to the season for Rangers, dropping points on the opening weekend of the Premiership season and crashing out of Champions League qualifying at the hands of Dynamo Kyiv.

However, Cerny believes last weekend's 6-0 win over Ross County demonstrates the team are on the right track before Sunday's visit to face champions Celtic.

"I think it was a good game to build on in many respects," said the Czech Republic international.

"How we want to play with the ball, against the ball, gave us good confidence. We scored many goals.

"I think at the moment we’re playing very good football. So, yes, step by step, we are getting where we want to be."

Cerny is relishing the prospect of making his derby debut and says he is not concerned by the widespread belief that his team are significant underdogs.

"I think the mindset should be that you want to win every single game," said the former Ajax winger.

"It doesn't matter what game it is. You can call us whatever you want - it’s ok. We just want to focus on what we are doing."

Rangers manager Philippe Clement has not ruled out the possibility of signing a free agent after the summer transfer window closed. (Glasgow Times)

Rangers manager Clement doesn't consider his side to be underdogs for Sunday's derby trip to Celtic. (Scottish Sun)

The Ibrox boss also says there is no way back for Ianis Hagi at Rangers after the Romania midfielder reportedly turned down a move away from the club. (Daily Mail)

Scott Wright made himself an instant hero at Birmingham City, scoring a late winner for his new club against Wigan Athletic, just a day after leaving Rangers. (Scottish Sun)

Click here to read Sunday's Scottish football gossip in full.

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In case you missed it, Rangers will start their Europa League campaign away to Swedish side Malmo on 26 September.

Below are Rangers' fixtures for the league phase of the revamped Europa League in full:

26 September: Malmo (A)

3 October: Lyon (H)

24 October: FCSB (H)

7 November: Olympiacos (A)

28 November: Nice (A)

12 December: Tottenham Hotspur (H)

23 January 2025: Manchester United (A)

30 January 2025: Union Saint-Gilloise (H)