RANGERS have fallen further behind in the championship race having been beaten 1-0 to Celtic in the fourth Old Firm derby of the season at Ibrox this afternoon.
Alex McLeish made four changes to his side that were beaten 2-0 at Pittodrie on Wednesday night with Alan Hutton and Stevie Smith starting on either flank while Nacho Novo and Thomas Buffel were also included in the starting eleven.
For Celtic, the inclusion of Roy Keane alongside Neil Lennon in the heart of Gordon Strachan’s midfield added a bit more spice to this afternoon’s highly anticipated encounter.
The atmosphere inside Ibrox Stadium was, as expected, electric before kick-off and the match started at a frantic pace with both teams unable to retain possession effectively.
To say it was a shock to the system when Celtic took the lead on 11 minutes was an understatement and poor defendingwas to again prove costly for the Gers.
Sotirios Kyrgiakos and Marvin Andrews both challenged John Hartson in the air and when the ball fell to Petrov he played in Zurawski who finished with aplomb from 12 yards.
Having taken an early lead, Celtic started to dominate proceedings and were more than happy to slow the game down and pass the ball from side to side.
Chris Burke continued his recent impressive form in the early stages of the game and it was evident that the Gers midfield were looking to the flame-haired winger to produce some magic to get the team back into the game.
This tactic almost worked on 20 minutes when Burkey skipped past Mark Wilson before whipping in a teasing cross which Boruc did well to hold.
The Rangers supporters were starting to show a bit of frustration at their side’s lack of goalscoring opportunities but they were on their feet on the half-hour mark when Alan Hutton showed his commitment with a crunching tackle on Shaun Maloney.
Things were to get even more heated moments later when Hartson and Kyrgiakos clashed midway in the Rangers half. Referee Michael McCurry defused the situation by giving both players a stern lecture but did not produce any cards.
With 10 minutes of the first-half remaining, Rangers should have been back on level terms.
Barry Ferguson flicked the ball to Thomas Buffel who used his speed to beat Bobo Balde on his way into the 18-yard box.
Just when it looked as though the Belgian international was going to shoot he decided to play in Novo but his over hit pass was cleared from the danger area,
The miss looked as though it was going to be costly when Celtic were then awarded a free-kick 20-yards from Ronald Waterreus’ goal. Shaun Maloney stepped up but the dead ball specialist blasted his effort over the bar.
The first-half ended with Celtic in front but their slender one-goal advantage meant that McLeish’s men were still in with a fighting chance of taking at least a point from the game.
The manager made no changes at half-time and Rangers came out of the traps with renewed determination although Prso maybe showed a bit too much enthusiasm when he received the first yellow card of the match on 48 minutes for a poor challenge on Petrov.
Stevie Smith again showed his undoubted potential and he had a chance to score on his Old Firm debut when the ball fell to him from a corner but his 25-yard shot went high and wide.
At this stage, Celtic were struggling to get out of their own half and the Ibrox faithful were in full voice as they tried to lift their team.
Next up to try his luck was Prso on 58 minutes. The towering striker received the ball from Hutton with his back to goal but his ambious turn and strike from 20 yards failed to trouble Boruc.
Peter Lovenkrands replaced Nacho Novo on 61 minutes and immediately moved into attack alongside Prso who found himself being chopped down by Keane on 64 minutes. McCurry had no otion but to book the former Manchester United star.
With the game now flowing from end to end, Kyrgiakos was unlucky with a header which narrowly missed the target before Balde found the net but was adjudged to have fouled Waterreus with a crunching aerial challenge.
Dion Dublin and Kris Boyd were also given their first taste of Old Firm football when they went on for John Hartson and Thomas Buffel respectively but neither striker had any clearcut goalscoring opportunites.
Burke continued to be Rangers most dangerous asset despite having taken an earlier knock. He again showed some great skill to beat about three defenders on 76 minutes but was unable to find Boyd or Prso, both of whom were lurking in the 18-yard box.
Rangers continued to search for an equaliser in the dying minutes of the match but were unable to snatch a point despite the ref adding four minutes of injury time.
It was a painful afternoon for Gers’ boss Alex McLeish who, having announced that he will be leaving the club in the summer, will now be hoping his side can bounce back from their third consecutive league defeat in time for next week’s crucial league clash against third-place Hibs.
RANGERS: Waterreus, Buffel (Boyd 71), Andrews, Ferguson, Prso, Novo (Lovenkrands 61), Malcolm, Kyrgiakos (Rodriguez 65), Burke, Hutton, Smith
Subs Not Used: Klos, Hemdani, Murray, Namouchi
Bookings: Prso (48) Kyrgiakos (63)
CELTIC: Boruc, Telfer, Balde, McManus, Wilson, Petrov, Keane, Lennon, Maloney (Pearson 89), Hartson (Dublin 74), Zurawski
Subs Not Used: Marshall, Thompson, Nakamura, Wallace, McGlincey
Bookings: Keane (64)
Referee: Michael McCurry
Attendance: 47,788