Preview: Dundee United vs Rangers - prediction, team news, lineups

Dundee United and Rangers will get their 2026-27 Scottish Premiership campaigns underway when they meet at Tannadice Park on Friday night.

The hosts finished seventh in the top-flight last term, while the visitors placed third in 2025-26.

Match preview

Dundee United, after the superb fourth-placed finish in their first year back in the Scottish Premiership, disappointingly missed out on another top-half finish as they dropped to seventh in 2025-26.

Jim Goodwin's side had a particularly challenging end to the campaign, losing two and drawing two of their final four matches, but the Tangerines have started the 2026-27 season in considerably stronger fashion.

Dundee United won three and lost only one of their four Scottish League Cup group fixtures, securing a first-placed finish in Group B to ensure their place in the next round.

However, the Tangerines failed to maintain that momentum heading into the Scottish Premiership campaign as they lost 3-2 to Salford City in a friendly fixture last weekend.

The Tangerines will be eager to quickly recover from that loss and get their 2026-27 league campaign off to a winning start, although that would require beating Rangers for the first time since August 2021 - losing nine and drawing four of the subsequent 13 clashes.

Meanwhile, Rangers - who finished third in 2025-26 - head into the opening game of the season having enjoyed an encouraging pre-season under new manager Derek McInnes.

Following the departure of Danny Rohl to Red Bull Salzburg in June, McInnes was swiftly appointed, arriving at Ibrox just weeks after heartbreakingly missing out on the 2025-26 Scottish Premiership title with Hearts, as Celtic clinched the crown on the final day.

The new Gers boss started his tenure with a 2-1 win against Saint-Etienne, followed by a 0-0 draw with West Ham United, and he will be eager to get off to an equally strong start in his first competitive match in charge on Friday.

McInnes was expected to be absent from the dugout after receiving a three-match SFA suspension following comments about referee John Beaton at the end of last season, but the ban has since been put on hold after Rangers confirmed their intention to launch an appeal.

McInnes will, therefore, be on the sideline for the encounter with Dundee United, in which Rangers will be hoping to secure an opening-day victory for the first time since beating Livingston 2-1 under Giovanni van Bronckhorst in 2022-23.

Rangers do have a formidable recent record in this fixture, winning nine of the last 13 meetings, while McInnes has also won six and drawn three of his last nine encounters with the Tangerines - last suffering defeat to Dundee United while manager of Kilmarnock in November 2022 (4-0).

Dundee United form (all competitions):

Rangers form (all competitions):

Team News

Dundee United will be without Miller Thomson due to an ankle injury, while Goodwin should have the remainder of the squad available to select from.

Lachlan Rose, who arrived from Newcastle Jets earlier this summer, has already scored three goals during Dundee United's Scottish League Cup group campaign, and the striker could start alongside Zac Sapsford and fellow summer signing Jesse Randall in attack.

Further back, Jack James Walton has conceded just one goal in his first four competitive games for the Tangerines, and the keeper will be hoping to record another clean sheet on Friday.

As for Rangers, McInnes has confirmed that Nicolas Raskin will not feature, while Jose Cifuentes and Ross McCrorie are both doubts due to injury.

Several new signings are expected to make their competitive debuts on Friday, including Lawrence Shankland and Cameron Devlin, who both arrived alongside McInnes from Hearts.

Shankland could start just behind Youssef Chermiti in attack, while Devlin may feature alongside Dan Neil at the base of midfield.

Dundee United possible starting lineup:

Walton; Naamo, Iovu, Forbes, Ferry; Camara, Tait, Eskesen; Randall, Rose, Sapsford

Rangers possible starting lineup:

Pandur; Sterling, Fernandez, Godfrey, Rommens; Neil, Devlin; Curtis, Shankland, Gassama; Chermiti

We say: Dundee United 0-2 Rangers

Rangers and McInnes both boast impressive records against Dundee United, and with the Gers squad eager to make a strong first impression under their new boss, the visitors are expected to come away with all three points.

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