Rangers have performed a U-turn on their plans to postpone their league clash with St Mirren, with the fixture now confirmed for Sunday, 24th August – right in the middle of their Champions League playoff schedule.

Officially, the decision has been framed as a willingness to “get games played” and keep momentum, but it’s hard to ignore the backdrop.

Two games into the season and Rangers have already dropped four points, trailing Celtic by the same margin. The idea of taking a game in hand into the first Glasgow Derby clash was suddenly less appealing when it became clear that gap could swell to seven points before a ball was kicked at Ibrox.

By reinstating the St Mirren match, Rangers now have the chance – and the pressure – to make up some ground before the derby. The alternative was a potentially grim scenario: Celtic arriving at Ibrox with a seven-point gap, knowing a Celtic win could stretch the gap to ten points before the end of August.

It’s a gamble either way. St Mirren have proved awkward opponents for both sides of the city in recent seasons, and facing them between high-stakes European ties will test Rangers’ squad depth.

 

For Celtic, the equation is simple: keep winning and make Rangers pay for their early slip-ups. Brendan Rodgers’ side will fancy their chances of piling on the pressure. But there’s no getting away from the fact they wanted to postpone their fixture until Celtic took a four point lead at the weekend.

 

The St Mirren fixture might have been reinstated, but the pressure hasn’t gone anywhere. If anything, with Rangers’ start already faltering, it’s now cranked up another notch.