IT'S all in Rangers' hands now. Just one victory, and they will be champions for the first time since 2004-05.
After the perplexing permutations of some previous years, the climax to this season has turned out to be pretty straightforward. The SPL title may still be decided on goal difference, but there is no longer any need for a goal chase by either Ranger
s or Celtic.
Following Celtic's goalless draw at Hibernian on Sunday, Rangers are two points clear at the top of the table. If they beat Dundee United at Tannadice, that's it, the title is theirs.
Even if they draw or lose, Walter Smith's team will still be champions provided Celtic fail to beat Hearts at Parkhead. But if Celtic win that match and Rangers fail to win theirs, the title will stay in the East End of Glasgow.
In that event the championship will go to Celtic by a point if Rangers lose, and by goal difference if Rangers draw. As Celtic already have a superior goal difference, even the narrowest win over Hearts will be enough provided Rangers drop two points. All Celtic can do is go for that win and hope Dundee United do them a favour.
Rangers, too, will certainly go for the victory. Achieving it, however, will be no formality. Tannadice is among the last grounds the Ibrox club would choose to visit in their final game, and in some recent contests it has required all their power just to take a point from the fixture.
Of the three games between the clubs played so far this season, Rangers have won 2-0 and drawn 2-2 at home, while the one game thus far at Tannadice was a 3-3 draw.
The clubs met five times last season, with a similar pattern of results. Rangers won both their home league games, but lost 2-1 and then drew 3-3 at Tannadice. The other match was the CIS Cup final, which finished 2-2 after extra time before Rangers won the trophy on penalties.
That 3-3 game last April, in which Rangers had to come from behind three times, did not appear especially significant at the time. Rangers were then seven points clear of Celtic with a game in hand, and still looked to be on course for the title.
In retrospect, though, that match was a crucial indication of how, as the fixture backlog piled up, Rangers were running out of steam. They lost their last league game on a Thursday night at Pittodrie, while Celtic went to Tannadice and won by a single goal.
What will make Sunday's match all the more difficult for Rangers is that United still have a lot to play for, as after losing to Hearts at the weekend they need at least a point to avoid being pipped by Aberdeen for a place in the Europa League.
United were curiously toothless in that match at Tynecastle. Playing a team who had failed to win or even score a goal in their previous four matches, Craig Levein's team should have had the confidence to assert themselves and prey on Hearts' nerves. Instead, the home side played with little sign of worry, beginning brightly, getting the opening goal after ten minutes or so, and going in at half-time two goals to the good before running out convincing 3-0 winners.
The spine of the United team functioned reasonably well, with Lukasz Zaluska in goal, Lee Wilkie and Garry Kenneth in central defence and Morgaro Gomis and Prince Buaben in midfield all getting pass marks. But they had little to offer further up the park, and were vulnerable on the flanks.
The first goal was scored by Lee Wallace from an incursion down the left, the second by Bruno Aguiar following a low cross by Calum Elliot from the right. And, while both those goals were created out of almost nothing, United were unable to achieve similar penetration.
Afterwards, Wilkie declared with little fear of contradiction that it had been one of his team's worst showings of the season. They will be determined to make amends this weekend, and it is hard to envisage them playing so badly for a second consecutive match.
David Goodwillie continues to impress with his energy, speed and physical presence, and he would have been far more of a handful for the Hearts defence had the service from his team-mates been even a little bit better. Craig Conway could be crucial in this regard, but he will need to get deeper against Rangers than he managed at Tynecastle. The more the visiting side press on in search of the win, the more space Conway will find to exploit.
On the face of it, Celtic have an easier task than their city rivals, being at home to opponents who have already secured third place and are therefore in no need of a specific result. Hearts manager Csaba Laszlo has guaranteed that he will play his strongest team at Parkhead, and it may in fact be stronger than the one which defeated United, as Andrew Driver could return from injury to provide some pace out wide.
Hearts may have found goals hard to come by recently, and it was significant that yet again on Saturday their strikers did not get on the score sheet. But Celtic have experienced a similar, if less acute, problem lately, and if Scott Brown is not passed fit after limping off against Hibs they will have lost the driving force behind many of their most impressive displays this season.
But at least they know that this year will be no repeat of six years ago, when they and Rangers went into the last day of the league season neck and neck, and both teams therefore had to go for as many goals as possible. Rangers beat Dunfermline 6-1 that day, Celtic took four off Kilmarnock, and the Ibrox club won the league by a goal.
This time it does not matter if Celtic win by one goal or by ten. All they can do is get the victory, and trust in United to do the rest.
The full article contains 1038 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
