Rangers manager Derek McInnes welcomed an Old Firm quarter-final against Celtic after securing his first victory in a 5-1 Premier Sports Cup win over St Mirren at Ibrox.
Celtic defeated Dundee United 4-0 at Tannadice on Saturday, placing both Glasgow clubs into the hat as the first two names drawn for the last eight on Sunday night.
The tie will be played at Ibrox on the weekend of September 12 and 13, just a week before the two sides meet again in the Scottish Premiership at Celtic Park.
The fixture follows troubling scenes during their Scottish Cup clash at Ibrox in March, when rival supporters invaded the pitch at full-time and threw missiles. Under Scottish Professional Football League rules, away fans will receive an allocation of around five per cent, compared to the 20 per cent permitted in Scottish Cup ties.
"I am delighted to be at home, obviously it's a mouth-watering tie," McInnes said shortly after the draw. "If you're going to win the trophy, you need to beat the better teams."
"Obviously with Celtic coming here, I think it means we'll face them two weeks in a row. It will be eagerly anticipated by everybody and it'll be something to look forward to," he added. "Hopefully by the time that game comes around, we'll have a few more wins and the squad will be a lot more settled and a bit stronger than it is at the minute. Because it will need to wrestle with a team like Celtic."
Old Firm Cup Quarter-Final
The win against St Mirren provided relief for McInnes after a difficult start at Ibrox, having gone four matches without a win. Pressure had mounted following a Europa League exit to Polish side Jagiellonia Bialystok on Thursday night.
Rangers responded with an emphatic performance, securing victory through goals from Ryan Naderi, Vanja Dragojevic, Djeidi Gassama, debutant James Penrice, and Ross McCausland.
McInnes shifted to a 4-3-3 formation for the match, using a single central striker in a competitive game for the first time in his tenure to increase attacking threat.
"There were so many positives for us," McInnes said. "I thought it was a strong start, we scored two goals inside 20 minutes, we should have maybe scored more. We looked a threat on counter-attack but we also built the game pretty well too. It's quite ironic, in the first competitive game I've gone with one striker and we looked like more of a threat."
"I thought we were very energetic in midfield, I thought our wider players contributed well. The game should have been put to bed," McInnes added.
St Mirren Performance and Debutants
St Mirren pulled a goal back before half-time, disturbing Rangers' momentum before the home side regained control in the second half.
"St Mirren then scored a good goal and, for the period after that, we weren't great. We can't allow one goal to rock us like that. But we stepped up again in the second half and got the job done," McInnes said. "For the first time, I probably enjoyed being manager of Rangers for a period in the first half. And then we lost the goal and I didn't enjoy it again. But I'm just glad to get a win."
McInnes praised defender James Penrice following his goalscoring debut. "It was a great debut for James as well. He has a real natural enthusiasm and I think that rubbed off on others around him. He also has really good quality, which he showed with his goal and assist."
European Fixtures and Transfer Targets
Rangers host Czech side Jablonec at Ibrox on Thursday night in a Europa Conference League qualifier, with McInnes targeting further additions to his squad ahead of the match.
"In terms of new players coming in, just the forward areas in general, we know what we need to get. We're still working really hard to do that," McInnes said.
Defender Ben Godfrey remains sidelined with a hamstring strain but could feature in the return leg. "I think Ben will be registered in the European squad as it stands," McInnes explained. "He might not be fully fit for Thursday, but I think he will certainly be at the second leg as it stands."
