RANGERS travel to Parkhead on Saturday lunchtime looking to leapfrog their fierce rivals at the summit of the Scottish Premiership table.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s men trail Celtic by two points heading into the first Old Firm encounter of the season.

With Tom Lawrence ruled out through injury, just what will Rangers starting XI look like?

Our writers give their predictions.

Derek Clark

The absence of Tom Lawrence is a huge blow to Rangers. The Welshman would have revelled in the red hot Parkhead atmosphere so replacing his qualities will be key to a positive result.

The backline almost picks itself given the injuries to key personnel and the fact the defensive structure has remained steady for much of the season thus far. The only potential alteration may see Ridvan Yilmaz replace Borna Barisic at left-back. There will be some supporters who still have PTSD from the Croatian’s horror show at the same venue back in February but he has been a consistent performer for much of this season and his experience will likely see him get the nod.

In the engine room, John Lundstram needs a partner who will help dominate what will be a key area of the pitch. Ryan Jack has looked off the pace recently so it’s likely Glen Kamara will drop in beside the Scouser. Rangers need one of the Finn’s vintage European displays if they’re to come away victorious.

In front of those two is likely to comprise Ryan Kent, Malik Tillman and probably Scott Wright on the right flank. Wright’s discipline and ability to bomb up and down the channel will likely see him get the nod over Scott Arfield as the Lawrence replacement although don’t be surprised to see Arfield play some part in the fixture.

Antonio Colak will lead the line given he has done so since the start of the season although the return of Alfredo Morelos to the squad is a huge positive and the Colombian may have a role to play in what is set to be another explosive encounter.

Rangers: McLaughlin, Tavernier, Goldson, Sands, Barisic, Lundstram, Kamara, Wright, Kent, Tillman, Colak.

Rangers Review:

Joshua Barrie

If not for Tom Lawrence’s injury, Rangers may well have gone into tomorrow’s Old Firm with the same 11 that defeated PSV in Eindhoven.

But the midfielder will miss the tie and remain out until the international break which leaves Giovanni van Bronckhorst in need of a reshuffle.

Jon McLaughlin is certain to start in goal with the same settled back four in front of him. Borna Barisic has struggled at Celtic Park in the past and Ridvan Yilmaz looked sharp against Queen of the South but throwing the Turkish international into a fixture of this magnitude on only his second league start would be a bold move.

This writer predicts Glen Kamara will partner John Lundstram at the base of midfield. Kamara’s best football at Rangers nominally comes when he’s in a midfield pairing and not tasked with running beyond or protecting the defence on his own. Van Bronckhorst will hope for another Eindhoven-like performance from the Finnish midfielder.

There is no clear option to replace Lawrence on the right. Rabbi Matondo has yet to convince that the role ahead of James Tavernier is his best position and Scott Wright’s end product varies in quality. With that said, Scott Arfield could perform a similar function to Lawrence in the middle of the pitch, tucking inside, playing close to the striker and allowing Tavernier to provide the width.

Malik Tillman and Ryan Kent will assume the other two slots behind Antonio Colak with Alfredo Morelos ready to play his part from the bench.

Rangers: McLaughlin, Tavernier, Goldson, Sands, Barisic, Lundstram, Kamara, Arfield, Tillman, Kent, Colak.