Forgotten £3.75m Celtic man edges closer to permanent exit as Rangers star described as ‘shining light’

Defending Scottish champions Celtic will face the only other unbeaten side in the division this weekend as they play host to a high-flying Aberdeen team with 13 consecutive victories in all competitions - giving them the best winning run of any club in Europe’s top 50 leagues.

Celtic and Aberdeen are the pacesetters in the division with a perfect 21 points from seven matches, but one club that will also be keeping a close eye on proceedings will be last year’s runners-up Rangers, who currently find themselves five points adrift in this term’s title race.

Rangers have recorded three victories and three consecutive clean sheets in the league since their resounding Old Firm defeat to Celtic and will hope to close the gap in this weekend’s trip to Kilmarnock.

Ahead of what promises to be an intriguing weekend of football with huge implications on the title race, we take a look at the main headlines surrounding Celtic and Rangers.

Forgotten Celtic defender unlikely to play for Hoops again

Celtic left-back Alexandro Bernabei is expected to secure a permanent transfer away from Glasgow this January, according to reports from Football Scotland.

The 24-year-old defender, who was reportedly signed for a fee of around £3.75m in 2022, has played just 23 matches for the Hoops and struggled for first team football under both Ange Postecoglou and Brendan Rodgers.

The Argentinian is currently out on loan in Brazil with SC Internacional and seems to have settled in well with 14 consecutive starts while also registering two goals and two assists.

Bernabéi in December but is thought to be surplus to requirements at Celtic. The Scottish champions are reportedly willing to sell the defender in January and his club and the player’s agent have expressed an interest in remaining in South America.

Internachional’s president  told Radio Gaucha: "Bernabei is on loan with the club until the end of the year. We still need to work with the club that owns his rights to buy him or extend the loan, whatever the possible strategy.

"We have already started talks with the player’s agent, who has expressed an interest in staying, which is important in the process. We hope to have a favourable outcome, but this will only happen towards the end of the year.

"Our idea is to keep Bernabei, as he increases in value with each game that passes. He is a player who has earned his space, conquered it, and maintained it, and today he is a very important performer for our team."

Rangers icon Derek Ferguson heaps praise on this season’s ‘shining light’

Former Rangers great Derek Ferguson feels defender John Souttar deserves special credit for being the team’s outstanding performer in what has so far been a tricky start to the season.

Souttar is yet to miss a minute of Premiership football this season and has demonstrated a high level of consistency throughout the campaign.

“Amongst all the doom and gloom, one man in particular is providing my old club with a bit of a shining light. Big John Souttar has been through the ringer himself over the years with all sorts of potentially career-threatening injuries.” Ferguson told the Daily Record.

He added: “From the day he arrived at Rangers, it’s felt like he’s been fighting a constant battle just to get himself up to full speed and get some regular games under his belt. And that’s why I’m genuinely so pleased for him now that he’s finally emerging as the central defender that the rest of us always hoped he would become.

“Souttar has been a real stand out for Philippe Clement since the start of the campaign – it’s fair to say he’s probably the most consistent performer in the Belgian’s squad. So there was something really satisfying about seeing him reclaim his place in Scotland’s defence against Croatia and Portugal and reproduce that same form in a dark blue shirt.”