GOAL! Celtic 0-1 Rangers (Kent 37)
Rangers have dominated for all of the game but somehow this has come against the run of play. Barisic’s low pass into the box from the left picks out Ryan Kent and he sweeps a first-time effort in off the post with the Celtic defence statuesque.
36 min: Tavernier does well to keep pace with McGregor and make a challenge as Celtic keep their foot on the accelerator.
34 min: All of a sudden it’s all Celtic. Davis heads off the line after Jullien connects well with Christie’s corner. the penalty, by the way, was given for Katic’s pull on Jullien. The Rangers man was booked and it was probably a fair decision. McGregor, though, came to the rescue.
SAVED! Celtic 0-0 Rangers
What a save this is! McGregor leaps to his left and claws away Christie’s fizzing effort. Nice height maybe but it was struck well.
Penalty!
32 min: … there’s grappling in the box and Kevin Clancy has spotted something. He points at the spot!
31 min: Goldson has to come across and make a fine tackle on Christie, who is sent galloping forward by Jack’s mistake. Celtic corner …
30 min: Edouard tries to get on the ball but eventually gets crowded out by Rangers defenders.
27 min: Johnstone crosses from the left – it’s behind Christie but he gets a kind of backheel scorpion kick on it and makes a reasonable contact. The ball flies over. It was an attempt at something a little like this:
25 min: … another scramble, this time Forster saves with his feet from Davis. You feel Rangers have to take advantage of their dominance here – Celtic are all over the place defensively but surely they’ll sort themselves out at some point.
23 min: The rattled Jullien gives away a soft, soft free-kick on Morelos. Another chance for a dangerous ball into the box … it’s deflected away for a corner.
22 min: McGregor and Christie can’t take advantage of Kamara’s error inside his own half. Cue a couple of thumping challenges as Rangers look to break.
20 min: As Blur once (nearly) sang, there’s Pressure On Jullien, who gives away another free-kick. Rangers can’t make anything of it though.
19 min: Christie gets a yard of space 30 yards out and thinks ‘why not?’ The Celtic fans behind the goal who have to throw the ball back give him his answer.
18 min: … whipped in by Tavernier, who has impressed in these opening exchanges, the loose ball falls to Morelos and worked back out to the right-back but this time his ball into the box is gathered by Forster.
15 min: Johnstones pulls the ball back to an onrushing McGregor as Celtic get on the front foot for the first time. He’s tackled immediately but Celtic will feel a bit better just for being down at the Rangers end.
12 min: Morelos, who moments ago had “a coming together” with Scott Brown, now fouls Jullien. The Morelos Rage-o-meter creeps up a couple of points …
11 min: Tavernier’s long pass finds Morelos scampering in behind the two Celtic centre-halves but he can’t find Aribo, who is arriving in support.
10 min: Forster drops on Aribo’s low pass across the six-yard box. Celtic really need to get a foothold here.
9 min: Some great intricate interplay gets Rangers going once more and it takes a stretching Jullian header to avert the danger before Tavernier blasts well over. The home side look a little nervy at the moment.
8 min: Barisic curls a free-kick into the Celtic area but Forster comes out confidently to claim.
7 min: Jullien is incredibly lucky on the edge of his own area after seeing his pass blocked by Aribo. Morelos can’t quite get hold of the loose ball.
6 min: Brown’s turn to lose possession in his own half which allows Aribo to trundle forward. He can’t quite get his feet sorted out and Brown gets back to challenge.
4 min: Rangers look to build an attack on the right as Bolingoli gives the ball away cheaply. Davis’s ball into the box is then headed away by Frimpong. Rangers making the brighter opening …
3 min: Johnstone gives away a free-kick midway in the Rangers half and there’s an early signal of intent from the visitors as McGregor jogs out of his area to launch it long. No risks early on.
1 min: A couple of loose passes early on as the sides compete to see who can give the ball away in the worst possible position.
Before kick-off there’s a minute’s applause for the former Celtic captain Duncan MacKay, who died on Boxing Day at the age of 82.
Click-clack, click-clack … out they come into a packed Celtic Park, half of which is bathed in winter sunshine.
Manager chat
Here’s Neil Lennon: “It’s the end of a tumultuous month, we’ve been brilliant, and I want us to go into the break on a high.”
And here’s Steven Gerrard: “This is a fresh game, another 90 minutes, we’ve got to find that [cup final] level.”
To while away the stressful minutes before kick-off, why not read Ewan Murray’s preview of today’s game:
A fixture bogged down by over‑the-top tribalism has a wider, useful value. Both halves of Glasgow’s big two have players capable of operating at a higher level. Édouard and Alfredo Morelos are widely heralded as blue-chip players but others – Ryan Christie, Callum McGregor, Ryan Jack and Glen Kamara – should relish the chance to demonstrate their abilities to a broader audience than is customary.
The teams
Celtic: Forster; Frimpong, Jullien, Ajer, Bolingoli; Brown, McGregor; Forrest, Christie, Johnston; Edouard.
Subs: Gordon, Hayes, Bauer, Bitton, Rogic, Ntcham, Griffiths.
Rangers: McGregor; Tavernier, Goldson, Katic, Barisic; Jack, Kamara; Davis Aribo, Kent; Morelos.
Subs: Foderingham, Flanagan, Edmundson, Arfield, Ojo, Barker, Defoe.
Updated
Preamble
Hello all and welcome to live coverage of (quick tally-up) the third Old Firm derby of the season. And it’s fair to say it’s a big ‘un.
Celtic are five points clear at the top of the Premiership, though Rangers have a game in hand. After this game the sides both go into hibernation for their three-week winter break. Today’s result could well set the tone for the second half of the campaign.
If Rangers are to close that gap at the top they’re going to have to break a trend. They have not won at Celtic Park since October 2010, nine years and 10 visits ago. And funnily enough, that season was also the last time Rangers won the league title.
Kick-off is at 12.30pm GMT. And the team news is imminent.