Having been on the end of plenty of derby defeats already this season, some Rangers fans won’t be looking forward to Sunday’s match with Celtic too much. The Hoops have won three of the four meetings between the two sides so far this season, with the other being a draw.
However, Rangers have arguably at their best as the underdogs in recent years, coping better when they have to beat expectations rather than meet them.
That underdog status is certainly with them this weekend. Brendan Rodgers’ Celtic still haven’t been defeated in domestic football this season and they appear to be highly motivated to pick up a domestic treble of trophies in his first term as boss.
In order to defeat the Scottish Premiership champions, the Light Blues will need to be firing on all cylinders and central to that is Pedro Caixinha ensuring he has the right XI on the pitch in the first place.
For us, there’s one man who’s not been getting a regular start this season that is due a chance from the start; Joe Dodoo. He’s only had three starts since his arrival last summer and hasn’t featured in a first XI since way back in November.
Here are three reasons why this forgotten man must return on the left hand side of the Rangers attack…
McKay isn’t getting the job done
For all the hype around Barrie McKay this season, his productivity has been fair lacklustre, especially since the turn of the year. He has only scored a single goal in 2017 and has looked decidedly off the pace for a couple of months now.
Whether it’s a desire to move away from the club, a struggle to meet expectations or simply not dealing well with all the change at Ibrox this season, it’s clear he’s not quite hitting the heights you’d expect of him.
It may seem harsh to drop him for one of the biggest games of the campaign but there’s simply too much at stake to risk him having another mediocre game on the left hand side of the Gers attack.
Joe Dodoo would breathe a bit of life into the position and remind McKay he’s not undroppable and to play in the truly big games at the club, he needs to earn it.
That cameo vs Aberdeen
Joe Dodoo’s cameo against Aberdeen at Pittodrie is undoubtedly one of the highlights of Pedro Caixinha’s short stint as Rangers manager so far.
Coming off the bench with just 20 minutes remaining, he set up a goal, scored one and hit the bar with another fierce effort. He showed he has the pace, the quality and the ruthless streak to be an effective attacker at Scottish Premiership level.
Aberdeen, outside of Celtic, have been the most consistent Scottish side this season and goals haven’t come easy against them but Dodoo cut through them like a hot knife through butter.
If he got the chance to do that against Celtic it would be a selection surprise and perhaps catch them off guard on the wide open expanse of the Hampden pitch.
If he can do it against the Dons, he can probably do it against the Celtic backline too.
He has the backing of the fans
Rangers fans have been calling Joe Dodoo’s inclusion in the starting line-up for a while, eager to see if he can produce when given the chance.
This poll from a Rangers Twitter account shows that a massive 78% of the 385 respondents want him to get the nod on Sunday.
That kind of backing could raise the hopes and the atmosphere in the Rangers end and in turn give Dodoo the confidence needed to be an effective attacking presence.
When feeling is so strong in one direction, it’s not often fans are wrong and if Pedro Caixinha goes against the feeling of the support and still loses, then it’d be a knock to his reputation even though it’s so early in his Rangers career.
