Steven Gerrard has given Rangers the belief of a potential title race.
Stiliyan Petrov has told the Daily Record that he believes an improved Rangers under Steven Gerrard will only galvanise Celtic in their bid to make it eight Scottish Premiership wins in a row.
Gerrard has significantly improved his Rangers side since taking over in the summer, bringing in 15 new players and the likes of Allan McGregor, Connor Goldson, Borna Barisic, Scott Arfield and more have had the desired impact.
Rangers have topped the Scottish Premiership twice in recent months, and now sit just one point behind Celtic in the table though the Hoops do have a game in hand.
Former Celtic midfielder Petrov believes an improving Rangers side is only going to help Celtic in their pursuit for an eighth successive title – as Celtic look to make it 10 league wins in a row.
“It’s a good thing to see Rangers looking strong again,” Petrov said. “It will make Celtic stronger as well because they know they need to perform to high levels every single week.
“It’s not just Rangers, there are a few teams up there and the competition is good for Scottish football. The great thing about Old Firm games is the intensity but we have not seen that for a while now.
“It’s been too easy for Celtic but there looks to be a challenge this season and it’s going to be interesting to see how Celtic respond. There was a lot of talk before the last derby but it showed there was still a big gap between the sides.
“Celtic played like champions that day. We’ll find out if Rangers have got closer this Christmas.”
Both sides have two more Scottish Premiership matches before they do battle in the second Old Firm derby of the season on December 29 at Ibrox. The game could prove crucial, with it being the last match before the winter break.
Rangers will be looking to improve their away record with a win over St. Johnstone on Sunday afternoon, while Celtic play host to Dundee at Parkhead.
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