The Old Firm is one of the most historic rivalries in the world, and Celtic and Rangers will meet for the 431st time on Saturday. But this year’s edition has an extra American flair to it. United States men’s national team manager Gregg Berhalter will be in attendance as James Sands and Malik Tillman are expected to start the match for Rangers while Cameron Carter-Vickers has become one of the first defensive names on the team sheet for Celtic.
For Sands, it has been impressive to start at center back for Rangers after playing sparingly last season mainly as a defensive midfielder. Facing a Celtic side that is perfect through five matches, scoring the most goals in Scotland, it will be a great atmosphere to test him and Tillman to see if they have what it takes to make the World Cup roster. But Carter-Vickers and Celtic have only allowed one goal to begin the season, so they won’t be easy to play through either.
Rangers have been a hotbed for Americans with Claudio Reyna and Maurice Edu starring for the team but Carter-Vickers is writing the playbook for Americans at Celtic. An Old Firm derby victory in a heavy-USMNT affair would be quite a feather in his cap. Both teams will also be competing in Champions League where group stage play kicks off next week, making this a perfect time for the elevated competition ahead of kicking off European competition.
Here’s our storylines, how you can watch the match and more:
How to watch and odds
- Date: Saturday, Sep. 3 | Time: 7:30 a.m. ET
- Location: Celtic Park — Glasgow, Scotland
- TV: CBS Sports Network | Live stream: fuboTV (Try for free)
- Odds: Celtic -117; Draw +265; Rangers +305 (via Caesars Sportsbook)
Storylines
Celtic: With a clean bill of health, Ange Postecoglou will likely play the same team that put nine past Dundee United in league play. Kyogo Furuhashi has been in good form with six goals in five matches while Jota has been involved in seven goals next to him. They’ll offer quite the challenge for Sands and the Rangers defense.
Rangers: Outside of long-term injuries to Nnamdi Ofoborh and Ianis Hagi, Rangers will also have a clean bill of health. Antonio Colak and James Tavernier have been the key cogs in the attack while Ryan Kent leads the team in assists with three. Jon McLaughlin will also have quite a bit to do in net due to Celtic’s scoring power, but there’s every reason to suspect that Rangers can pull off a draw away from home.
Prediction
In a hard-fought derby match, the points will be shared as both teams will maintain an unbeaten start to the season, but Celtic will drop points for the first time this campaign. Pick: Celtic 2, Rangers 2
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