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The squads take the field to a thunderous reception, Hampden Park separated evenly between blue and green. To earn the chance to face St Mirren at this venue in December … here we go.

Additional Fixtures

More matches: John Brewin offers real-time commentary for West Ham v Newcastle in the Premier League; Yara El-Shaboury has all the latest from the early kick-offs in the women's top division.

As for us, approximately five minutes remain before the game begins at the national stadium!

Match Officials

Nick Walsh takes charge this match. He previously officiated the 2024 cup final featuring these two rivals and a continental game the previous campaign when he distributed four dismissals and a dozen bookings. Avoid challenging him.

Dugout Views

The Rangers manager: Despite this being his debut in this fixture, the fresh-faced gaffer has made it clear in recent days that he's familiar with participating in other major rivalries as a coach, at Bayern Munich and with Sheffield Wednesday.

I recollect when Hansi Flick assumed control, our subsequent fixture took place against Dortmund at our stadium. We secured a 4-0 victory. It always provides a lift following success in these encounters. As well, in the EFL Championship in the Sheffield derby, I was also part [of it] there. I understand the significance to the supporters. This represents more than a simple match.

The 36-year-old German has been complimenting Martin O'Neill's lengthy tenure at 73.

I hold great admiration for such a managerial journey. I think it is always great for a coach when you sustain your career over decades in this field and you are successful.

I'm merely commencing my coaching path. I have a lot of work to do to achieve similar status however the positive aspect we start at 0-0, different generations and we'll discover what we can demonstrate with our teams in this encounter.

I'm tremendously excited. I have had some experience though I anticipate an enormous event this Sunday. To participate in such a match, the stakes are extremely high. Victory means reaching the final, a loss ends your participation. I believe all factors align for an outstanding match.

Counterpart Perspective

The Celtic manager: The stand-in manager has been reflecting this week regarding his initial encounter against Rangers 25 years ago, the memorable 6-2 victory.

Now, repeating that performance could be very challenging, scoring six goals against those opponents. I'd settle for a scrappy single-goal triumph should we achieve it. Various individuals tell me and mention to me: 'That was an amazing match', despite not being born at the time. They inform me their grandfathers and fathers spoke about it regularly. It transformed into a crucial game for our team, not merely in that term, but likely for future progress.

The tension for nearly 72 hours beforehand, and then should you secure success, a great relief. And I think that's what the legendary Walter Smith often mentioned too, that comfort surpassed other feelings. But they were fantastic fixtures truly. It remains a wonderful encounter.

This represents an important match for us. Really, don't disguise that at all. It's a last-four clash, it's a big match for our squad. Any Celtic-Rangers game represents a major event, however specifically because of the situation of the recent days, if not recent weeks, definitely.

Dugout History

Two fresh managers on the sidelines this afternoon though there's a significant difference in rivalry knowledge between them. Danny Röhl faces his debut as Rangers manager while Martin O'Neill gets ready to manage of his 28th.

The outcome today might significantly influence regarding the tenure O'Neill's return as (interim, for now) Celtic boss continues, as Ewan Murray has considered.

Celtic could pay £5m in compensation to lure Kieran McKenna away from Ipswich. They may attempt an even bigger gamble on Robbie Keane. The Scottish champions could decide to provide Club Brugge manager Nicky Hayen an initial experience within British soccer. These constitute chances to varying degrees. Beyond O'Neill? This is arguable.

Starting Lineups

Celtic (4-3-3): Schmeichel; Ralston, Trusty, Scales, Sarrachi; McGregor, Engels, Nygren; Maeda, Kenny, Tounekti.

Substitutes: Sinisalo, Balikwisha, Yang, Osmand, McCowan, Hatate, Murray, Forrest, Tierney.

Marcelo Sarrachi begins preferred to Kieran Tierney at left-back. James Forrest also drops out from the starting lineup that beat Falkirk in their recent match.

Rangers FC (3-4-3): Butland; Djiga, Souttar, Cornelius; Tavernier, Diomande, Raskin, Meghoma; Aasgaard, Chermiti, Danilo.

Reserves: Kelly, Aarons, Fernández, Rothwell, Antman, Moore, Gassama, Curtis, Miovski.

James Tavernier gets the nod over Max Aarons in the right flank position, including Mohamed Diomande replacing the banned Connor Barron in the middle with Thelo Aasgaard favored instead of Mikey Moore in attack.

Opening Context

Hello and welcome to the Old Firm. It ought to be superior {than last time|compared to the previous meeting|versus