Celtic have the chance to move 13 points clear of Rangers this weekend as they welcome their bitter rivals to Parkhead for the final Old Firm clash of the season.
The Hoops have gone 10 matches without defeat since losing the reverse fixture at the end of December and are well on course to maintaining their domestic dominance.
Celtic
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There may be a new man in the dugout, albeit a familiar face in Neil Lennon, but the story has been the same since Brendan Rodgers walked out on Celtic a month ago.
Lennon, who won five major honours in four years during his previous stint in charge, has guided his side to two wins and a draw in his three matches at the helm.
Celtic required a 96th-minute goal from Odsonne Edouard to overcome Dundee in their most recent outing on March 17, however, a week on from being held to a goalless draw by Aberdeen.
The Hoops have only extended their lead over Rangers during that period, though, and they are now 10 points clear of their closest challengers, while Aberdeen are eight points further back.
Avoid defeat this weekend, then, and the title will be heading to Celtic Park for an eighth season in a row as there will be just six matches left for Rangers to make up the deficit.
Celtic have not tasted defeat on home soil in domestic competitions this term, boasting by far the best record in that regard as they have dropped points just once in the league - that stalemate with Aberdeen a few weeks ago.
With the Scottish League Cup already in the bag, and a Scottish Cup semi-final against Aberdeen on the horizon, it is looking more and more likely to be another clean sweep of major honours.
Rangers would love nothing more than to derail their arch-rivals' campaign, but even defeat this weekend would surely not be enough to knock the reigning champions too far off track, having made a habit of bouncing back from their rare losses this term.
Recent form in Scottish Premiership: WWWWDW
Recent form (all competitions): LWWWDW
Rangers
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For Steven Gerrard, the aim this season was always to push Celtic as far as possible in the league and challenge for silverware in the two domestic cup competitions.
By finishing second this term, an improvement on their third-placed finish from 2018-19 should they stay there, Gerrard can ultimately be happy to have ticked off the first part of that mission.
However, the Gers suffered a 2-0 home loss to Aberdeen in their Scottish Cup quarter-final replay earlier this month - a big blow for Gerrard, who saw his side knocked out of the Scottish League Cup by the same opposition.
Since hitting form with three successive wins in all competitions, seeing off Kilmarnock, Hamilton Academical and Dundee by a combined 14-0 scoreline, Rangers have stuttered and their season now lies in tatters.
The last-eight loss to Aberdeen, having drawn the first match 1-1, was sandwiched by draws by the same scoreline against Hibernian and Kilmarnock, with Alfredo Morelos's second-half strike earning them a point in their most recent outing.
Gerrard will now be keen to finish the season on a high by stringing together wins and holding down second place. Victory this weekend, meanwhile, and the Liverpool legend will not rule out chasing down Celtic in the remaining weeks of the season.
For that to happen, Rangers must summon the spirit shown in the most recent Old Firm derby three months ago. The Gers were deserved 1-0 winners that day, just as Celtic were in the first meeting of the season, so they will see this as a decider of sorts.
Ultimately, winning the title will give Celtic bragging rights over their city rivals. For Gerrard, though, this is the start of a long-term project and he would love nothing more than victory on enemy territory on Sunday to send out a loud and clear message.
Recent form in Scottish Premiership: WDWWDD
Recent form (all competitions): WWDDLD
Team News
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Celtic boss Lennon is hoping to have Tom Rogic, Mikael Lustig and Kieran Tierney available for selection, but Ryan Christie is expected to sit this one out.
Edouard led the line for the Hoops last time out and, following his late winner at Dens Park, he will likely get the nod over Timothy Weah and Oliver Burke here.
Weah could be deployed in attacking midfield, though, and Scott Sinclair - who has netted just once in seven matches since his treble against St Johnstone in early February - is also in contention to start.
Rangers will be without Borna Barisic, meanwhile, with the left-back revealing this week that he is facing a fortnight on the sidelines because of an ankle injury sustained on international duty.
Andy Halliday is the most likely candidate to fill in for Barisic, and Joe Worrall is expected to come in for Niko Katic at centre-back.
Elsewhere, Ross McCrorie may be given the nod to provide some physicality in front of the back four, which would see Ryan Jack - the matchwinner the last time the teams faced off - once again miss out.
Celtic possible starting lineup:
Bain; Lustig, Benkovic, Boyata, Hayes; Brown, McGregor; Weah, Rogic, Sinclair; Edouard
Rangers possible starting lineup:
McGregor; Tavernier, Goldson, Worrall, Halliday; McCrorie; Kamara, Arfield; Kent, Candeias; Morelos
Head To Head
Rangers' victory in the sides' last outing of 2018 was the first - and indeed last - time Rodgers had tasted defeat to Celtic's Old Firm rivals.
That came at the 13th time of asking, with the Hoops winning 11 of the previous 16 encounters between the sides, drawing the other five.
Not since October 2010 have Rangers been victorious on enemy territory, coming out on top 3-1 after recovering from a goal behind, with Kenny Miller netting twice against his former side.
We say: Celtic 2-0 Rangers
Celtic have not exactly been firing on all cylinders in recent weeks, perhaps rocked by Rodgers's departure, yet they have still managed to extend their advantage on Rangers, who are winless in four in all competitions. Neither team needs motivation heading into one of the fiercest derbies on the planet, but in the home side's case they know that victory will all but secure another top-flight title.
Daniel Lewis
