Rangers and St. Mirren meet at the Ibrox Stadium on Sunday in a League Cup encounter.
Derek McInnes’ men will be looking to register their first win of the season after a disappointing start so far.
Rangers vs St. Mirren – Match preview and team news
- Date: Sunday, 16th August.
- Kick-off: 4pm BST.
- Venue: Ibrox Stadium, Glasgow.
Rangers team news
Rangers face a severe squad crisis ahead of their Premier Sports Cup tie against St Mirren, with manager Derek McInnes dealing with seven unavailable players.
The Light Blues are most depleted in both defence and attack. Tuur Rommens is sidelined for up to eight weeks with a severe groin injury, while Youssef Chermiti faces a long-term recovery following an anterior cruciate ligament tear.
Ben Godfrey is also out for several weeks with a hamstring issue, and Jose Cifuentes remains completely unavailable due to ongoing fitness problems.
Furthermore, midfielder Thelo Aasgaard is a major doubt after being forced off during Thursday’s gruelling Europa League match.
To ease their critical left-back shortage, the club has agreed a loan deal for Hearts’ James Penrice, but he is not registered in time to feature.
Consequently, McInnes may resort to a makeshift three-man defence or deploy Ross McCrorie out of position at left-back.
St. Mirren team news
St Mirren arrive at Ibrox in excellent domestic form but must navigate a few notable absences of their own as they look to exploit the hosts’ European hangover.
Manager Craig McLeish will be without influential midfielder Keanu Baccus, who remains out until the end of August with an Achilles tendon injury.
Forward Jonah Ayunga remains a long-term absentee with a cruciate ligament injury, while Ryan Mullen is still sidelined with a thigh injury despite recently resuming light training.
The visitors also face a late fitness dilemma regarding defender Marcus Fraser, who is carrying a knock; Liam Donnelly is currently on standby to replace him in the backline if he fails a late test.
On a positive note, Declan John has fully recovered from a hamstring issue and is completely fit for selection, giving the high-flying visitors a reliable option on the flank.
Form
Rangers
Rangers are enduring a difficult start to their domestic and European campaigns, leaving them completely winless this season. Their recent domestic outing resulted in a disappointing 2-1 defeat to Hibernian, which followed a hard-fought 1-1 draw with Dundee United. Midweek European commitments brought more frustration, as a 1-1 home draw against Jagiellonia Białystok sealed a 3-2 aggregate defeat. With pressure mounting, the hosts desperately need a victory to kickstart their season.
St. Mirren
St Mirren are currently high-flying and head into this fixture in sensational, flawless domestic form. The visitors have won both of their opening Scottish Premiership matches without conceding a single goal, comfortably defeating Falkirk 2-0 away before securing a tight 1-0 victory over St Johnstone. Having won eight of their last nine matches across all competitions, they boast immense momentum and look perfectly poised to exploit their hosts’ recent struggles.
Predicted lineups
Rangers: Pandur; Sterling, Fernandez, Makhanya; Yokota, Neil, Raskin, Devlin, Curtis; Shankland, Naderi
St Mirren: Chapman; Richardson, Donnelly, Gogic, John; Carr, Nsio; Ramos, Phillips, Mochrie; Sule
How to watch Rangers vs St. Mirren?
The Rangers vs St Mirren Premier Sports Cup match is being broadcast exclusively live on Premier Sports 1 in the UK today.