Rangers v Celtic: What are the key battlegrounds in '50/50' Old Firm derby?

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Former Celtic striker Scott McDonald calls it "the first 50/50 Old Firm derby in a long time".

Both Rangers and Celtic go into the game after indifferent starts to the campaign, picking up six points from three league games and failing in their respective Champions League quests.

With strengths to be fearful of and weaknesses to expose, plus the return of a hostile crowd and a Covid-hit Rangers to bear in mind, what key issues may decide where the game is won and lost?

BBC Scotland discusses the match with McDonald, ex-Rangers striker Mark Hateley and former Ibrox defender Richard Foster.

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The impact of European excursions

Both sides made hard work of progressing to the Europa League group stage on Thursday. Rangers travelled to Armenia without their manager and several key first-team players after a Covid outbreak and edged past 10-man hosts Alashkert.

A six-hour flight home is hardly ideal preparation after a gruelling game in stifling heat and it remains to be seen who will return to the side for Sunday.

Celtic's defensive woes were exposed again in a 2-1 second-leg defeat in Alkmaar, but Ange Postecoglou's men scraped through on aggregate despite enduring a torrid night in the Netherlands.

Might those issues at the back be exposed again at Ibrox?

The managers' approach

Postecoglou is set in his way of playing energetic, attacking football and that has been evident in Celtic's recent league games, with back-to-back six-goal wins against Dundee and St Mirren.

McDonald is certain his fellow Australian will deploy the same style on Sunday, regardless of playing the champions on their own turf.

"The only way Celtic know is to be on the front foot," he tells BBC Scotland. "The best defence for them is to attack and dominate the ball, Ange will look do that. They'll press relentlessly and try put real pressure on Rangers.

"We see within Ange's demeanour, he fully backs himself and his philosophy. We've seen that through the tough period he had at the beginning of his tenure."

However, former Rangers full-back Foster believes the expansive nature of Celtic's play could fall into the hands of the home side.

And despite a shaky start to the season, both Foster and Hateley are in agreement that Ibrox boss Steven Gerrard should stick to the formula that has delivered five wins in the last six Old Firm clashes.

"Gerrard will go with what he knows," Foster says. "He has players that can play at that level, under that intense spotlight, and they have done it so well."

Hateley adds: "Gerrard's got players there that have experienced it. He knows the players that play well in Old Firm games. He's got the tried and trusted that didn't lose a derby game last season."

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