Rangers have won their past seven matches across all competitions, but manager Derek McInnes has cautioned against viewing Saturday's fixture at Dundee as an opportunity to apply psychological pressure to their title rivals. According to BBC Sport, McInnes believes the focus must remain on securing three points rather than looking at the broader championship picture.
A victory at Dens Park would move Rangers to the top of the Scottish Premiership, above Celtic, who do not play until Sunday when they face third-place Hearts in a rematch of last season's title decider. Celtic have struggled recently, losing four of their past five matches, while Rangers have built momentum with their extended winning run.
Why McInnes is resisting the narrative around Celtic's struggles
When asked whether Rangers could gain a psychological edge over Celtic and Hearts with a win, McInnes rejected the premise entirely.
"The thing for me with that is you've still just got to win your game,"he said.
"Whenever you're asked to play, whether it's a Friday, Saturday, Sunday or Monday, you've just got to win your game. It's a bit early in the season to [put pressure on title rivals]."
The Rangers manager's reluctance to engage with talk of title momentum reflects his pragmatic approach to a season that began poorly. According to Sports Mole, Rangers started under McInnes without a win in his first four matches but have since recovered with six consecutive league victories. The club currently sits second with 19 points, two behind Celtic, while Dundee occupy fourth place with 13 points from eight matches.
Celtic and Hearts both played in European competition on Thursday, with Celtic suffering a heavy 4-1 defeat to Benfica in the Europa League and Hearts drawing 1-1 with Nordsjaelland in the Conference League. Rangers, by contrast, missed out on European football entirely after a disappointing Conference League play-off defeat to Czech side Jablonec in August.
How does missing Europe affect Rangers' preparation?
The absence of European commitments provides Rangers with more time between fixtures, though McInnes stressed this carries no guarantees.
"Of course we would rather be in Europe and there was a wee bit of envy watching last night, but the only benefit from that is if we can be successful domestically,"he explained.
"It does give us longer to prepare for games but it doesn't guarantee anything."
McInnes emphasised that having the squad available throughout the week has put Rangers in better shape for the Dundee encounter.
"The fact we're playing first this time around, I won't even mention putting pressure on an opposition. I'm more focused on the fight being with us to improve and just concentrating on getting another three points."
What improvements does McInnes expect from Rangers?
Rangers returned from the international break with a 3-1 victory over Kilmarnock last weekend, but McInnes identified areas requiring attention.
"We can't have the performance we had in the second half last week. The drop-off was too big, although there were maybe a lot of reasons for that."
The manager demanded consistency going forward.
"There will be no reason for that this week. It's up to us to deliver a big performance and recognise that we need to get more. We need to keep stepping on the gas and deliver the big performances we're looking for."
According to Yahoo Sports, Rangers' seven-match winning streak includes five clean sheets, demonstrating defensive solidity alongside their attacking prowess. Dundee, meanwhile, have won their last two league matches, both by 2–1 scores against Motherwell and Falkirk, suggesting they arrive in decent form despite their lower league position.
Historically, Rangers hold a significant advantage in this fixture. Sports Mole reports that Dundee have not beaten Rangers since November 2017, with Rangers winning 16 of their last 20 meetings between the sides.
On the injury front, McInnes provided an update on his squad availability. According to BBC Sport, Dujon Sterling is fit after training for several days, while Ross McCrorie is expected to miss approximately three weeks with a hamstring injury.
What happens next?
Rangers travel to Dens Park on Saturday, 17 October, for an 8 p.m. kick-off, with the match scheduled to be shown live on Sky Sports. The fixture comes at a critical juncture in the season, with Celtic and Hearts playing their own match the following day, setting up a potentially significant weekend in the title race.
