Celtic travel to Dundee to take on Paul Hartley’s high-flying side in the marquee fixture of the fifth round of the 2015 Scottish Cup, while Glasgow Rangers face a difficult afternoon when they host Raith Rovers.

Rangers are still reeling after the bitter loss against arch-rivals Celtic in the League Cup, and with issues surrounding the club off the pitch—the squad is making more headlines with the Dave King takeover than their actual performances, per BBC Sport—Sunday’s match comes with some serious upset potential.

Dundee have been more than solid since winning promotion to the SPFL last season and caused the upset of the fourth round by eliminating Aberdeen back in November, so cup favourites Celtic will be warned. Here’s the full schedule for the fifth round:

To access BBC’s iPlayer, click here. For the Sky Sports Go app, click here.  

 

Celtic Will Struggle But Survive against Dundee

Scottish champions Celtic unsurprisingly lead the SPFL standings, having yet to lose a match in 2015, and look primed to add several trophies to their impressive collection of silverware in 2015.

The Hoops were among the more active teams during the winter transfer window, highlighted by the signing of Dundee United duo Stuart Armstrong and Gary Mackay-Steven, per Sky Sports:

The Old Firm may no longer carry the same meaning as it did before Rangers’ liquidation, but it’s still arguably one of the highlights of Celtic’s season. A relatively easy 2-0 win on Sunday means the visitors will travel to Dundee with plenty of momentum.

Despite all of that, fans shouldn’t expect a walk in the park on Saturday. The Dees sit well outside the relegation zone, so the Scottish Cup is likely the club’s main objective right now.

Manager Hartley told BBC Sport he knows Saturday’s clash won’t be easy, but after a strong first season back in the top flight, he’s confident of Dundee’s chances:

We know it’s going to be an extremely hard game but it’s one we’re really focused on and looking forward to.

We’re six games unbeaten, so we’ve been consistent over the last few weeks and we need to try and keep that going.

We’ve got a chance to progress to the quarter-finals and supporters always look forward to a good cup run.

Celtic will play Partick Thistle and St. Johnstone in the league before the highly anticipated Europa League fixture against Italian heavyweights Inter Milan, and with the Nerrazzuri struggling in Serie A, it’s all too easy to get carried away with the club’s current streak of good fortune.

Reuters’ Jamie McGeever is just about on cloud nine right now:

Going into Saturday’s match with that mentality could result in disaster, and fans better hope the players are taking this clash a little more seriously. Dundee are unbeaten since the derby against Dundee United on New Year’s Day, and the hosts should not be taken lightly at all.

 

Controversy Will Doom Rangers against Raith Rovers

As if the Dave King takeover didn’t provide Rangers with enough distractions, even more controversy broke out on Thursday. Chief executive Derek Llambias was forced to hold a press conference to deny claims the board is influencing team selections at Ibrox, per BBC Sport’s Chris McLaughlin:

Those comments came in response to caretaker manager Kenny McDowall, who told reporters he is being forced to play five loan signings from Newcastle United, a club owned by Rangers shareholder Mike Ashley, via BBC Sport.

McDowall has already resigned from his post and is currently in charge of the squad on a 12-month notice period. To call the current situation at Ibrox “unhealthy” would be an understatement.

Sporting Life’s Gavin McGrane is predicting an upset at the hands of Raith Rovers on Sunday, and it’s easy to see why:

Rovers are built for a deep cup run, playing the kind of feisty, defensive football that can drive opposing teams mad. Last weekend, Hibernian spent the bulk of the second half trying to kill Raith off, only to watch striker Christian Nade score in injury time to conserve a point for his team.

Hibs were frustrated by Rovers’ defensive resiliency throughout the match despite leading for the majority of the second half, and the result at Easter Road will give the visitors plenty of confidence ahead of their trip to Ibrox.

Add Rangers’ struggles, question marks regarding McDowall’s motivation, the controversial loan signings and the emotional impact of the loss to Celtic, and you have a recipe for disaster for the home side.

 

Follow @ReverschPass

from Bleacher Report – Front Page http://ift.tt/1AEkL90
via IFTTT http://ift.tt/eA8V8J