Andy Walker: Rangers will struggle to finish third

Follow us on Google Discover

The 51-year-old cannot see Mark Warburton’s Ibrox side Glasgow Rangers finishing higher than third.

Andy Walker has told Sky Sports that Rangers will do well to finish third in the Scottish Premiership this season.

Rangers had a productive couple of weeks after beating Partick Thistle and Inverness, but losing to Celtic in the Scottish League Cup semi-final on Sunday was yet another difficult reminder of the gulf in class separating both sides.

Mark Warburton’s troops only lost 1-0 on this occasion, having been humiliated by a 5-1 margin in September, but the scoreline did not reflect yesterday’s match at Hampden Park.

It was one-way traffic for the most part and, if not for Rangers goalkeeper Matt Gilks, it might have been another mauling by the Bhoys.

Before the season started, the Gers, who welcomed 12 new faces to Ibrox in the summer, were expected to be the Hoops’ main threat to a sixth successive Premiership crown.

But it has not worked out that way, and Walker said on Sky Sports that those on the blue half of the Old Firm divide should expect a third-place finish at a maximum.

He said: “It was a 1-0 scoreline but it’s as comfortable a 1-0 as you’re likely to get. Matt Gilks kept Rangers in it with a number of saves.

“To the fans, it’s a hard sell to be very realistic and say: ‘This squad is not strong enough to compete for the title. We’ll do well to challenge Aberdeen and Hearts to get into a European spot’.

“That’s hard, especially given they have the second-highest budget in Scottish football. Aberdeen have done really well over the last couple of years on a fraction of the budget Celtic have. They’ve pushed them in the title race to March or April and it’s still undecided. Right now, I think Rangers will do well to finish third.”

They might seem a million miles from Celtic at the moment, but the gap between Rangers and Aberdeen is nowhere near as vast and Warburton should be confident of finishing second.

The Gers lost 2-1 at Pittodrie last month but it was a controversial defeat and one in which Rangers were arguably the better side.

Runners-up is not good enough for a club of that stature, of course, but finishing second in your first season back in the top flight is not to be baulked at. They are seven points behind Celtic – who have a game in hand – and three behind second-placed Aberdeen.