Rangers captain Dan Neil has warned his team-mates to expect a backlash from Celtic when the two rivals meet again next weekend, days after inflicting a heavy Old Firm defeat on their city rivals.
Neil scored twice and was named man of the match as Rangers beat Celtic 3-0 in the Premier Sports Cup quarter-finals on Sunday, a result that finally ignited the Derek McInnes era in front of a crowd of 50,000 at Ibrox.
The teams meet again next Sunday in the Scottish Premiership, this time at Celtic Park, where Rangers will have no away fans and will face a 60,000-strong home crowd demanding revenge.
Celtic currently sit five points ahead of Rangers in the title race, and Neil stressed the importance of taking something from Parkhead to close that gap.
"Yeah, listen, they're a good team and there's going to be a reaction," Neil said. "It's at their place and, although we've won on Sunday, by no means have we over-celebrated."
"We know that, yeah, it's job done this week, but we've got a massive game in the league. We got through in the League Cup which is brilliant and we are going to Hampden with a chance of a final. But we're under no illusions about the league and the points at the minute and our full focus is on next week before the international break."
Old Firm rivalry renewed
Rangers and Celtic are the two dominant clubs in Scottish football, and their meetings, known as the Old Firm derby, are among the fiercest rivalries in the sport. Ibrox and Celtic Park sit less than three miles apart in Glasgow, and between them the two clubs have won the vast majority of Scottish top-flight titles.
Sunday's win, in the Premier Sports Cup, the current sponsored name for the Scottish League Cup, gave Rangers bragging rights heading into the league fixture and also booked a semi-final against Aberdeen, with the final due to be played at Hampden Park, Scotland's national stadium.
Neil's derby-defining display
Neil ran the show in midfield against Celtic, scoring two excellent goals to inspire the win. There had been debate among Rangers supporters over whether the 24-year-old, a former captain of English club Sunderland, had the quality to succeed at Ibrox, but he delivered a captain's performance when it mattered.
Neil said confidence was now building within the Rangers squad after a difficult start to the season.
"I thought all the lads had the game plan to an absolute tee, in possession and out of possession," he said. "I thought we were really aggressive, really intense, but also mixed it up as well, were really compact and narrow in a block and I thought we judged when to jump out of that block and go man-for-man very, very well."
"I think you've seen that probably in the last few games which is why the clean sheets are starting to come."
On his own contribution, Neil added: "Two goals for me in any fixture is pretty good. I haven't scored many braces if any in my career so unbelievable. I was putting my head on the pillow on Saturday night, thinking of scoring one never mind two, so to come away with a brace is immense."
"But I have to give big credit to the whole team. I thought it was a real team performance out there and everyone deserves massive plaudits."
