Rangers are set to take on Dundee United at Ibrox Stadium in the Scottish Premiership on Saturday. The home side are on an impressive run of form, while the away side have been struggling recently. Can Dundee United revive their form against the Rangers?
Rangers have continued their impressive start to the season under new manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst. They enjoyed a brilliant 2-0 win at home in their recent match against St. Johnstone. Alfredo Morelos opened the score sheet for his side in the 42nd minute. Ryan Kent added another goal three minutes into the second half, capping off the 2-0 victory. The Gers have transitioned seamlessly under Bronckhorst, and they remain unbeaten since he took over from Steven Gerrard. As a result, they have maintained their place at the top of the league with 14 wins, three draws, and one loss in 18 matches. Rangers’ title rivals Celtic are four points behind them. The Gers will be looking to increase the point gap and put pressure on their rivals as Celtic’s next league match is on midweek. Ryan Jack is set to remain sidelined and will return after the winter break. Kemar Roofe is also unavailable and won’t be back until the winter break.
Rangers have been dominant all season, as indicated by their goals scored. They are placed at the top in terms of goals and average more than two goals per match. Alfredo Morelos is currently the top goal scorer for the Rangers with seven goals to his name.
The Gers have been solid defensively as well and have conceded second-lowest goals this season. They concede an average of 0.765 goals per match.
Dundee United’s struggling form in the Premiership continued as they failed to bounce back at home against Livingston. Ayo Obileye’s second-half penalty was sufficient to provide Livingston with three points. The Terrors have now lost three matches back-to-back for the first time in 10 months. Goalscoring has been an area of concern for them all season, and they would need to find solutions if they are to remain in contention for European football. Dundee United remain winless in their last four matches and have scored just once in those games. They have seven wins, four draws, and seven losses in 18 matches. The Terrors would be looking to improve their form when they face Rangers although, it would be a difficult feat to achieve. They could take some confidence from the fact that Rangers’ only defeat this season in the Scottish Premiership came at their hands. Liam Smith, Marc McNulty, and Kai Fotheringham are unavailable for the match due to injuries.
In the previous game against Livingston, Dundee United were defeated despite dominating in the majority of the attacking stats. They had a better xG than their opponents. Niskanen took the joint-highest number of shots while Glass made the highest number of dribbles. The latter also made the highest number of recoveries in the opposition half. Charlie Mulgrew won the highest number of aerial duels.
In terms of successful defensive duels, Dundee United are placed third in the league. They average 36.76 successful defensive duels per match.
Predicted XI
Rangers (4-3-3): McGregor; Barisic, Bassey, Goldson, Tavernier; Arfield, Kamara, Aribo; Kent, Morelos, Hagi.
Dundee United (4-4-1-1): Siegrist; Freeman, Edwards, Mulgrew, McMann; Niskanen, Fuchs, Glass, Harkes; Pawlett, Clark.
Prediction
Ranger are favorites going into the match and should come out on top.
