Derek McInnes has admitted Rangers are trying to make themselves “relevant domestically again” as he prepares his side to face Celtic in Sunday’s Premier Sports Cup quarter-final at Ibrox.
McInnes admitted Celtic have set the standard in Scotland in recent years and said Rangers are trying to close that gap.
He said: (RecordSport), “We recognise Celtic are a good team who have been the main title winners and the team that’s picked up more trophies than any other club in recent years.
“We just want to make sure that we give ourselves a chance to be relevant domestically again in terms of winning trophies and Sunday gives us a chance to take a step towards that.”
His comments are hard to ignore.
Celtic won a fifth successive league title last season and also lifted the Scottish Cup, while Rangers finished third in the Premiership.
Martin O’Neill’s side have started this campaign strongly as well, winning all six of their league matches and sitting five points clear of Rangers.
McInnes knows Sunday will be a different test.
With no Celtic supporters inside Ibrox for the cup tie, he has called on the home crowd to stay with his players even when the Hoops have spells on top.
He said: “We’ve got to bring the crowd with us. You’re not going to play Celtic and dominate the game for 90 minutes. We’ll have spells, they’ll have spells, it’s just the way it is.
“It’s important that we tap into having that 50,000 behind us – be behind the players, support them, have their backs, not be on their backs and really make it as tough for Celtic as possible.”
That plea comes after Rangers needed a late winner to beat St Mirren 1-0 at Ibrox on Wednesday.
There was growing frustration from the stands before Bojan Miovski struck in stoppage time, and McInnes is clearly aware of how quickly the mood can change.
He added: “Celtic are too good a team not to have some sort of spells in the game.
“But if they can stick with us and I think it’s important that we try and strike that first blow and try and bring that crowd with us because like I say the strength of our club, a big performance on the pitch and a big performance off the pitch certainly helps matters for us.”
Kasper Høgh also returned from injury in Perth, while Kieran Tierney came off the bench late on.
Cameron Carter-Vickers was left out of the squad as a precaution after feeling sore following the St Mirren game.
Sunday gives Rangers their chance to respond, but McInnes has already said plenty about where the balance of power sits, Celtic are the champions, the recent trophy winners, and the side Rangers are still trying to catch.
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