You wouldn’t call the past ten years a vintage decade for Rangers FC. They may have won one title — the 2020-21 Premiership — but that pleasure will have been overridden by the success of bitter rivals Celtic, who have won the other nine. There’s been signs that Rangers are slowly edging back to the level required to make it a two-horse-race for the Premiership, but there’s still some work to do. As it stands, Celtic will go into the 2023/24 season as Champions that fully expect to add another win to their tally. But could it be worthwhile using an introductory betting deal to back Rangers for glory? There are certainly some grounds for hope. On this page, we’ll look at some of the things that The Gers have to do to get back on top.
A New Strike
Rangers strikers have been performing well, but not as well as Celtic’s. The rival team’s forward players have hit the back of the net over twenty times more than Rangers, and that can make a huge difference in the quest for the title. As it stands, Rangers lack the true talisman that will pick up crucial deciding goals in the biggest games.
It looks like changes are afoot, however. While Michael Beale has opted to play Alfredo Morelos in attack, it’s clear that the manager doesn’t have full confidence in the Colombian striker. His contract is up in the summer and it seems likely that he’ll leave. In his place, Beale will look to sign a leading striker who can bag more than twenty goals in a season. If you throw goals from Colak and Tavernier into the mix, too, then the club will be a potent attacking force that could cause Celtic problems.
A Return of Belief
It seems wrong to suggest that Rangers have an inferiority complex, but, watching some of their big games, it’s hard to deny that they’ve lost some of the robustness that made the club so successful in the first place. That has been especially evident in the club’s big battles against their main rivals, where they just haven’t delivered the level of performance that you’d expect from such footballing giants. Clearly, confidence is a bit low, and while it might be possible to win trophies without having any swagger, it certainly makes things more difficult. They’ve shown that, on their day, they can go head-to-head with anyone. The big challenge next season will be building their confidence to the point where they really believe that they can get their hands on the trophy.
Change Behind the Scenes
You can’t win anything without everyone pulling in the same direction. In the big games, it can be the fans that hold the key to success, via their passion and support. If those fans aren’t on board, or worse, are actively fighting against the club, then it can be impossible to build the momentum needed to win games. For the club to move forward, they’ll have to address the fan protests aimed at the club’s hierarchy, which have been largely focused on Sporting Director Ross Wilson and Manager Director Stewart Robinson. With voices getting louder, the club may need to look at addressing this issue sooner rather than later. It’s the only way the club can achieve the level of focus needed to overcome Celtic, who are acting in a much more cohesive way.
Be Ready to Dig Deep
Finally, for Rangers to win the title next season, they’ll need to forget the past successes. They’ll win games by working towards the future, not by relying on what’s happened in the past. The truth is that Celtic are functioning like a well-oiled machine at the moment, and if Rangers are going to overtake their bitter rivals, then they’ll need to dig deep and show the world that they are genuinely deserving of the title of Scottish champions. The work begins now.