Celtic vs Rangers: O'Neill's Challenge Ahead of Old Firm Clash

Celtic and Rangers collide again on Sunday, with the champions limping into the latest Old Firm showdown under a cloud of doubt and bruised pride.

A 3-0 humbling by Rangers in the Premier Sports Cup quarter-finals at Ibrox last weekend, followed by a 3-1 Europa League defeat to Ferencvaros, has turned the spotlight harshly on Martin O'Neill and his players. The mood around the champions has darkened. The table, though, still offers them a powerful card to play.

Beat Rangers, and Celtic move eight points clear. Lose for a third game in a row, and the gap shrinks to just two points. The stakes are obvious. So is the tension.

O'Neill under strain, but defiant

The pressure around O'Neill is growing, but he is not backing away from the contest.

"We're ready to go, we really are," he insisted. "We're getting prepared for the game. It was a difficult game last Sunday and difficult last night, but we're ready to go."

He knows the narrative: a team rocked by two damaging defeats, questions over mentality, questions over recruitment, questions over him. Yet Celtic still lead the league, and that is the foundation he keeps returning to.

"Confidence, we're far from rock-bottom. We're still in the lead in the league. If we can win this, we can extend the lead. If we don't, going into the international break, we're still going to be in front."

The caveat landed quickly.

"It's not the thing that you would look forward to going into an international break on three successive defeats, if that's the case.

"We've got to be a bit more inventive but the crowd will be up for this. The players are capable of turning it around."

The message is clear: the table says one thing, the performances another. Celtic cannot afford another flat display.

New signings face instant examination

The 3-0 defeat at Ibrox raised an awkward question: do the new arrivals really understand what this fixture demands?

Several recent signings struggled badly in that cup tie, unable to stamp any authority on the occasion. It was not just a tactical failure, it was an emotional one.

"It will probably take a little bit more time, but I think anybody who experienced last Sunday, to know what it's all about, it shouldn't need many more lessons," O'Neill said.

Sunday gives them no hiding place. The derby returns, the noise returns, and so does the expectation that they respond.

Team selection may be shaped by fitness as much as form. O'Neill confirmed that "one or two" players who came off during the Ferencvaros defeat will need to be assessed before the weekend.

Yang Hyun-Jun remains away on international duty with South Korea, and the manager would not be drawn on whether he might shift shape to pair Kasper Hogh and Camilo Duran up front. The option is there. The commitment to it, less so.

Alistair Johnston and Callum Osmand are still sidelined with injury, trimming his choices in key areas.

Rangers carry momentum – and grievances

Rangers arrive with the momentum of that 3-0 cup victory and a sense of grievance over how it was policed.

Striker Ryan Naderi is a doubt after suffering an ankle injury in that win, the result of a challenge from Mika Baur. Rangers have contacted Scottish FA head of refereeing Willie Collum to ask why no further punishment followed the incident.

One unnamed player is also a fitness concern for the visitors, though they have been boosted by left-back Tuur Roomens returning to training after injury.

So Rangers have problems of their own, but they also have something Celtic currently lack: the feel of a team that has just landed a heavy blow in the rivalry.

The champions still hold the lead. Rangers hold the psychological edge. On Sunday, one of those advantages will start to crack.