Alex MacQuoid
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Celtic go into this one sitting pretty at the top of the Scottish Premiership, unbeaten through six league games, but there’s an uncomfortable footnote hanging over Parkhead right now. Rangers thumped them 3-0 in the League Cup quarterfinal just weeks back, and Derek McInnes’ side arrive on the back of five straight wins in all competitions. Honestly, the league table tells one story and recent form tells another, and this derby sits right in the middle of both.
Callum McGregor remains the heartbeat of this Celtic side, dictating tempo from deep with more touches than anyone else in green and white over the last five matches. On the other side, Dan Neil has been quietly brilliant for Rangers, four goals in five appearances is a rate that should worry Celtic’s back line more than the bookies currently suggest.
Hot stat: Rangers have scored in every single one of their last five matches and, more strikingly, put three past Celtic without reply in their last meeting – the heaviest derby scoreline in either direction for a good few seasons.
| 🏆 Tournament: | Scottish Premiership 2026/2027 |
| 🏟 Venue: | Celtic Park, Glasgow |
| 🗓️ Date: | 20.09.2026 |
| ⏰ Time: | 13:00 CEST |
Celtic vs Rangers prediction
We think there’s real value on Celtic winning this one, but not by much and not comfortably. Six wins from six in the league is not a fluke, Celtic have scored 14 and conceded just 3, and playing at Celtic Park in front of their own crowd tends to sharpen that edge even further. Rangers’ recent form is legit though, five straight wins doesn’t happen by accident, and that League Cup mauling will have given McInnes’ players real belief walking back into this stadium. Our punters team leans Celtic, narrowly, expecting a tighter, scrappier game than the league table difference implies.
Style-wise these two teams couldn’t be more different in how they get things done. Celtic dominate the ball, over 2,400 passes across their last five games compared to Rangers’ 1,710, and they commit fewer fouls too (82 versus Rangers’ 76… actually close, but Rangers pick up more free kicks conceded at 86 to Celtic’s 61). Rangers are the more direct, physical outfit, more shots (110 to 95), more interceptions (40 to 31), suggesting a side happy to press higher and break quicker rather than build patiently. That contrast in approach, patient possession against direct pressing, usually produces cagier opening spells before space opens up after the break.
| 🔥Hot Tip: | Rangers to score first, Celtic to win |
| ⚽Total Goals: | Over 2.5 |
| 💥Both Teams To Score: | Yes |
| 🎯Total Corners: | Over 9.5 |
Team Analysis
Celtic’s perfect league record masks a rougher few weeks outside domestic competition. Their last match was a 1-3 defeat to Ferencvaros in Europe, following straight on from that 0-3 League Cup exit against this very opponent. Before those two setbacks though, O’Neill’s side had strung together four consecutive wins, including a 3-0 dismantling of Aberdeen and a 2-1 grind past Saint Mirren. In our preview of Celtic vs Ferencvaros we backed Celtic to edge a goal-filled game at home, maybe 2-1 or 3-2, but the visitors flipped the script completely and left Parkhead with a 1-3 win, so that call went against us.
Rangers, meanwhile, look like a team peaking at exactly the right time. Their last outing was that emphatic 3-0 win over Celtic in the League Cup, and it capped a run of five straight victories that also includes wins over Saint Mirren, Motherwell, Falkirk and Aberdeen. None of those wins were particularly convincing on the scoreline (mostly 1-0 or 2-1 type results), but the consistency itself is the story here. McInnes has found a settled group and a winning habit, and that tends to carry teams into derbies with genuine swagger rather than nerves.
🚨Check out our dedicated Celtic vs Rangers stats page for more info.
Pre-game odds and win probability: Celtic the favourite
- Moneyline Celtic 2.15 | Rangers 3.00
- Draw 3.70
Bookmakers still lean Celtic here, roughly 44% implied probability against Rangers’ 30%, but the gap is nowhere near as wide as the league standings suggest it should be. That tells its own story honestly. The market clearly hasn’t forgotten that Rangers won the last derby, and neither should punters looking at this one purely through a table-position lens.
Possible Starting Lineups
Celtic possible starting eleven
- GK: Viljami Sinisalo
- DF: Liam Scales, Auston Trusty, Dane Murray, Colby Donovan
- MF: Callum McGregor, Mika Baur, Oliver Sorensen
- FW: James Forrest, Benjamin Nygren, Camilo Duran
O’Neill has kept faith in a settled back four all season, and there’s little reason to change that now. McGregor pulls the strings from deep in the 4-2-3-1, with Nygren and Forrest offering width and Duran, sharp in front of goal lately, leading the line. Watch how much license Sorensen gets to push forward, his passing numbers suggest a player trusted in tight spaces.
Rangers possible starting eleven
- GK: Ivor Pandur
- DF: Dujon Sterling, Emmanuel Fernandez, Olwethu Makhanya, James Penrice
- MF: Nicolas Raskin, Dan Neil, Ryan Naderi
- FW: Djeidi Gassama, Min-su Kim, Lawrence Shankland
McInnes has stuck with the same 4-2-3-1 shape across the winning run and there’s no logic in breaking it up now. Neil’s goal output from midfield is the standout thread here, four in five is a striker’s return from a deeper role, and Gassama’s shot volume on the wing (23 across five games) makes him a genuine outlet on the counter. Shankland’s three goals in just three appearances make him a real threat if space opens late.
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Celtic. Source: Official Facebook. Edited photo
TipsGG Match Prediction
This one is closer than the table suggests, and we’re leaning Celtic at home but not by a landslide. Six wins from six in the league says one thing, that 3-0 League Cup beating three weeks ago says another, and Rangers’ current form (five straight wins, scoring in every one) can’t just be waved away. Our read is Celtic edge it, something like 2-1, with goals at both ends given how open both teams have looked defensively in recent weeks. Corners and cards should both run high too given the physical, pressing nature Rangers bring into these fixtures. Maybe not the cleanest Celtic win of the season, but a win nonetheless is our call.
