FT – Celtic 2-4 Rangers. It’s all over and what a result for Walter Smith and his team. They took this game to Celtic and really punished them after the break with an awesome attacking display. Rangers are now back on top of the SPL and nobody can argue they don’t deserve to be there. Cracking goals from Cousin, Miller and Mendes will live long in the memory.

90 mins – GOAL! Strangely enough, it was 4-2 that day in 1994 and that’s the way it’s going to finish here after Nakamura puts a free kick in. McGregor is raging with his wall but it doesn’t mean much in the grand scheme of things. Even the Rangers fans are cheering sarcastically.

89 mins – It’s almost a hat-trick for Miller as he stings Boruc’s hands and the Pole concedes a corner. After it comes in, Mendes plays Davis beyond the last man and he nearly scores but hits the side-netting instead.

88 mins – Rangers are playing out time now and oh, how they’ve earned it. This is the first time they’ve scored four at Parkhead since January 1994 and it’s a day to remember.

83 mins – Another great stop from McGregor. Wilson drives from 30 yards and it’s a good hit but the Rangers keeper is equal to it, fisting over the upright to keep that three-goal cushion.

79 mins – IT’S MILLER TIME! Kenny strokes in his second to seal the points on a marvellous day for Rangers. Broadfoot crosses low from the right and Boruc fumbles the ball right into the Scotland hitman’s path. He taps in and the away fans go crazy. Rather ironically, the attendance has just been announced as 58,595 – going by the number of home fans leaving, it looks a fair bit less than that now. Celtic 1-4 Rangers, unbelievable.

78 mins – Substitution for Rangers, with Adam going off and Nacho Novo – a scorer six times for the Light Blues against Celtic – coming on.

76 mins – RED CARD! Celtic were quick to equalise when Rangers first went ahead and now they’ve evened up the personnel count too. Vennegoor of Hesselink is next to earn an early bath for lashing out at Broadfoot, who is also yellow carded for his part in the incident.

75 mins – RED CARD! Cousin is off but it’s somewhat debatable. He goes up for the ball and is punished for using his elbow as he goes up for a ball with McManus, who doesn’t claim a foul. There’s a lot of sympathy for the big man from the visiting bench and rightly so.

73 mins – Davis is making a great contribution and is in the right place to clear a goalbound header off the line. Seconds later, McGregor is carded for time-wasting.

71 mins – Celtic make a double substitution as they try to get back into the game. Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink and Barry Robson are on for Samaras and the quiet Paul Hartley.

68 mins – Adam goes into the book for clipping McGeady’s heels as Celtic pile forward looking to pull one back. Nakamura sends the free kick in but McGregor punches away unchallenged.

61 mins – GOAL! It’s absolutely incredible – Pedro Mendes is next to break his Rangers duck! The Light Blues have been dominating and they deserve to extend their lead further with another belter. Davis takes a corner out on the left and instead of throwing it into the mix, he picks out Gers’ Portuguese midfielder 30 yards out. He doesn’t even bother taking a touch – he just slams it into the net with Boruc well beaten. It’s now 3-1 Rangers and the lead os certainly merited.

56 mins – Cousin goes into the book, perhaps unfairly given the amount of fouls Caldwell has had given against him for bringing down the Gabon hitman.

52 mins – GOAL! Some said it was written in the stars and so it proves – Kenny Miller scores his first goal of second spell with Rangers against Celtic and what a strike it is. Cousin tangles with Caldwell and with everyone looking for referee McDonald to take action, Thomson sends a great cross to Miller at the back post. He connects so sweetly, sending a low right-footed volley beyond the diving Boruc to spark utter bedlam in the away end.

49 mins – Maloney catches sight of goal for the first time but, like Adam, he also places the ball a yard too wide and McGregor has it covered in any case.

48 mins – Wilson brings down Broadfoot in the right channel and it’s another free kick for Rangers in a good position but Adam shoots from a tight angle and it’s always curling beyond the far post.

46 mins – Rangers get played restarted through Miller and Thomson. No changes to either side at the midway point. Straight away, Miller hits the left corner and beats two men to set up Adam but he steers wide.

HT – Celtic 1-1 Rangers. Full-blooded as always, it has been an entertaining half, with Rangers playing well in spells and Celtic coming into it more as time has gone on. Being all-square is probably fair at the break, but Gers will be disappointed at the manner they were pegged back so soon after taking a lead through that wonderful Cousin strike.

39 mins – GOAL! The lead barely lasts as Celtic pull level but it’s a careless goal to lose. Mendes and Davis leave the ball for each other and that allows Celtic to come forward. When McGeady swings it in, the ball hits off Adam and when Papac tries to swipe clear, it falls straight to Samaras who nets from close range.

36 mins – GOAL! Magnificent strike from Cousin, totally justifying his selection by Smith. Pedro Mendes sets him clear on the right but more than 40 yards from goal, he still has a lot to do. He surges down the flank, holding Mark Wilson off superbly and starts cutting in towards goal. With the home defence expecting him to cut back to the waiting Miller, he instead beats Artur Boruc at his near post.

31 mins – Good save from McGregor. Hinkel crosses from the right and with Shaun Maloney challenging, the ball comes off Weir and spins towards the Rangers net. Keeper McGregor reacts superbly, palming up in the air before gathering at the second attempt.

29 mins – This time Davis sends his corner deep beyond the back post and Cousin meets it first but sends his volley over the frame.

28 mins – Broadfoot brilliantly surges forward and Rangers are pressing hard for an opener. Miller eventually sends a low, teasing cross in and it is put behind for a corner. When that comes in Andreas Hinkels nods the ball behind again.

25 mins – Adam bursts clear after Celtic’s attempts to come forward break down. Sasa Papac offers him support down the left but he sends an awkward cross towards Miller, who can be forgiven for failing to do much with it.

21 mins – Celtic have their first real attempt on goal. Nakamura collects on the left after Davis is unlucky to lose possession and the Japanese swings in for Georgis Samaras, whose header is gathered by Allan McGregor. Aiden McGeady then has a go but is off-target from long distance.

15 mins – Adam takes the set piece and although it is poorly delivered, Miller gets on the end of it and nods it over the upright.

14 mins – McManus pulls down Cousin on the right wing and is also booked. This is a good chance for Rangers.

10 mins – McManus clatters into Miller and McDonald awards a free kick. After some decent build-up play, Thomson collects the ball 30 yards out and shoots just over the bar.

8 mins – Kevin Thomson goes in late on Shunsuke Nakamura and is shown the first yellow card of the game by referee Dougie McDonald.

3 mins – Adam does well on the left, getting past two men then crossing. Although he is blocked, Miller fires the rebound towards goal and see his effort put behind for a corner. Steven Davis swings it in and Cousin heads towards goal but find the side-netting instead.

1 min – Rangers win a free kick just inside the Celtic half and Kirk Broadfoot whips a vicious ball in. Kenny Miller almost connects but Stephen McManus just scrambles clear ahead of him.

0 mins – It’s 12.30pm and Celtic get the first Old Firm derby of the season underway. Rangers manager Walter Smith has sprung a couple of surprises with his team selection and both Charlie Adam and Daniel Cousin start. We’ll find out over the next 90 minutes whether he was right to recall them or not.

CELTIC: Boruc; Hinkel, Caldwell, McManus, Wilson; Nakamura, Brown, Hartley, McGeady; Maloney, Samaras.

Subs: Brown, Vennegoor of Hesselink, Robson, Loovens, O’Dea, Hutchinson, Crocas.

RANGERS: McGregor; Broadfoot, Bougherra, Weir, Papac; Davis, Mendes, Thomson, Adam; Cousin, Miller.

Subs: Alexander, Edu, Dailly, Novo, Lafferty, Aaron, McMillan.

Referee: Dougie McDonald.

Old Firm derbies are often heated affairs and Sunday’s first meeting of the season between Celtic and Rangers will raise the temperature of the Scottish Premier League season.Novo Pre-Old Firm Interview
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Before the other clubs played their game in hand on Saturday, the two Glasgow rivals were already in their familiar positions at the top of the table.

Only goal difference edged Celtic ahead of Rangers, with both having won two and drawn one of their three matches.

Here, BBC Sport profiles the two sides before they enter the cauldron that will be Celtic Park on Sunday.

MATCH ODDS : Celtic 1/1   Draw   23/10   RANGERS   14/5

LAST SEASON

In the four Old Firm fixtures during season 2007/08, the home team always came out on top.

At Ibrox, a 3-0 win in October, followed by a 1-0 victory in March, put Rangers in a commanding position at the top of the Scottish Premier League before Celtic recorded back-to-back victories over their greatest rivals at Parkhead in April.

Strachan’s side won 2-1 and 3-2 in thrilling encounters to re-ignite the title race.

Celtic eventually won the championship on the last day of the season, their third successive SPL triumph.

CURRENT FORM

Both sides share seven points after three games.

Rangers’ opening to the season has been overshadowed by an early exit from Europe, while Celtic have just discovered their Champions League opponents having gained automatic qualification to the group stages of the competition.

Controversial refereeing decisions have dogged the opening SPL fixtures, particularly in matches involving Celtic.

But Sunday’s referee Dougie MacDonald says he wants the game to be decided in a fair manner and is determined to maintain communication with his two assistants at all times.

MANAGERS

Gordon Strachan has faced Rangers boss Walter Smith on six occasions in an Old Firm fixture. Smith’s side won the first four of these encounters without losing a goal before Celtic’s double victory in April.

The managers also met on numerous occasions while managing in England, Strachan having been in charge of Coventry City and Southampton and Everton being Smith’s former employer.

In total, more than 14 encounters that included one draw, Smith has won eight times against one of Strachan’s sides, while the latter has won on five occasions.

Smith, of course, is in his second spell as Rangers manager and has taken charge of the Ibrox side in 40 Old Firm games, winning 22, losing nine and drawing nine.

Strachan has managed Celtic in 13 Old Firm derbies since joining the Parkhead side in 2005. He has won six, lost five and drawn twice.

PLAYERS

With Rangers having signed more players than their Old Firm rivals, the home side’s line-up is slightly easier to predict.

Recent signing Glenn Loovens could partner Celtic captain Stephen McManus in defence after making a debut against Falkirk last week, but fit-again Gary Caldwell may regain his place at Loovens’ expense.

But quite who the Celtic defence will face in the Rangers attack is unclear with Smith having deployed his many strikers in a variety of formations so far this season.

Former Celtic striker Kenny Miller and fellow new signings Kyle Lafferty and Andrius Velicka are all candidates for a lone frontman role should Smith elect to go with a 4-5-1 formation, but Kris Boyd could partner any of the aforementioned in a 4-4-2. Nacho Novo and Jean-Claude Darcheville may also feature at Celtic Park.

In midfield, there is sure to be a battle between Celtic’s Paul Hartley, Scott Brown and Barry Robson and Rangers’ Pedro Mendes, Kevin Thomson and Steven Davis.

Rangers’ defence has gone through a reconstruction with Carlos Cuellar departing for Aston Villa and Madjid Bougherra coming in from Charlton Athletic.

The Algerian is set to partner David Weir at the heart of the visiting defence, but they will not necessarily face Celtic’s first-choice strike pairing of Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink and Scott McDonald.

Both are struggling with injury, meaning Strachan may select Georgios Samaras and Shaun Maloney.

AFTERMATH

At such an early stage of the season, the lasting impact of this match may not be felt until much later in the campaign.

However, gaining an advantage for either side would be a welcome way to enter the two-week international break from domestic football.

The Old Firm are scheduled to meet again at Ibrox in late December before the fixture returns to Celtic Park on Valentine’s Day.

But, although a passionate affair, the Old Firm match will seldom be regarded as a romantic derby.

ARCHIE CAMPBELL regained his goalscoring touch this afternoon by blasting home a sensational hat-trick as the under-19s beat Aberdeen 3-1 at Balgownie Playing Fields.

The pacey hitman helped Billy Kirkwood’s side take their unbeaten run to three games out of three in the league but it was a strong and confident performance all-round from the Murray Park kids.

Rangers went in at half-time with a two goal advantage in place after Campbell had hit the net on 21 and 44 minutes.

His first was a quick turn and shot from the edge of the box and he made no mistake with his second after he was found by Isa Bagci who supplied an excellent through pass before his teammate finished with aplomb.

But the home side responded quickly after the restart and caught their Glasgow opponents cold by making the scoreline 2-1 with only a minute of the second-half played.

Campbell, however, was in fine form and when the striker had the chance to bag his side’s third after good play from Kal Naismith there was only going to be one outcome.

Rangers are now the only team in the under-19 league to have a 100 per cent record after recent wins over Falkirk and Hearts and Kirkwood was delighted to see his side pick up all three points.

He said: “It was very pleasing to see the boys get another victory and it was a good display although we were a bit erratic at times.

“Ross Perry and Jamie Ness, in particular, were excellent on the day as was Archie who took his goals really well.

“That will do his confidence a lot of good and, hopefully, he can push on now and enjoy a good season.

“But overall I thought it was a decent game between two sides who like to get the ball down and it’s always nice to travel back from Aberdeen with three points in the bag.

“We had a few players out today such as Danny Wilson, Stephen Stirling, Rhys McCabe and Kane Hemmings but the lads that came in did very well.”

American midfielder Mo Edu has asked Walter Smith to give him his Rangers debut in Sunday’s Old Firm encounter.

The player’s arrival in Glasgow was delayed as a result of the collapse of insolvent airline Zoom, in addition to problems with a travel visa.

Rangers manager Walter Smith says Edu will be considered for Sunday’s squad after a training session on Saturday.

“We’ll see how he is, but I think it would be asking a lot to be involved in a game of such importance,” said Smith.

The 22-year-old midfielder played for the United States at the Olympics in Beijing and will cost Rangers £2.6m after agreeing a five-year contract.

“You’re always aware when you try to take a player from America that there’s issues with work permits and visas, but we’re delighted now that we’ve got him over,” said Smith. It’s maybe a bit soon, considering we have a game on Sunday, but hopefully once he settles in, he can show he can make an impact for us
Walter Smith

“It’s maybe a bit soon, considering we have a game on Sunday, but hopefully, once he settles in, he can show he can make an impact for us.

“He’s a good player in an area of the field we were hoping to improve and hopefully, once we have everyone integrated, we’ll see some benefits from it.”

Smith also said Edu would probably be the last signing at Ibrox in the summer transfer market before the deadline closes on Monday at midnight.

Edu spent part of the week in Canada arranging a visa following a successful application for a work permit and has taken part in a light training session after arriving in Scotland on Friday morning to meet Smith and his new team-mates.

The midfielder said: “There was a problem with the flight company and there were a couple of flight changes but it was nothing too serious.

“I’m excited to be here. It’s what I’ve been waiting for over the last few weeks. Now that everything is finalised, I’m happy.”

When asked about Sunday’s Old Firm encounter, Edu said he was fit and ready and was keen to be involved in the match.

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