Falkirk vs Rangers - Falkirk Stadium - 12th April 2026 12:00

After the first 8 games in the SPFL, most Rangers fans were already writing off the season, however as we get ready to travel along the M80, for the final game prior to the split, we are firmly in a title race and Falkirk are the next obstacle to be cleared.

Hearts and Celtic both play on the Saturday which means the squad and the fans will know exactly what the permutations are for this game week, but what they do doesn’t change what Rangers need to do.

At this stage of the league, it’s a simple demand on the squad, just win! It doesn’t matter if that’s a stuffy 1-0 or an expansive 4-0, the three points are the only measurable outcome here. Obviously more goals are better given the closeness of this race but failure to pick up all three points could be a fatal blow to our chances with some difficult games on the horizon.

We’ve played Falkirk twice already this season, once at home and once away. In both cases the outcome was a draw, which has been our biggest stumbling block all season. We’ve lost significantly less games than both our near rivals, however failing to convert one point to three, has created a situation where any of the top three could go on and win the league.

Whilst Falkirk have done incredibly well to be promoted and finish in the top six at the first time of asking, their recent form has been sporadic. In their last five league games, they have two wins, two losses and a draw which is probably about right for a side sat mid table. In contrast, Rangers had three wins and two draws in the same period.

Falkirk have doubts over MacIver and Marsh who are both carrying thigh injuries but no other significant worries. Rangers have quickly gone from that clean bill of health to filling up the treatment room again. We have confirmation Naderi is out for this one and potentially the rest of the season, whilst fellow January signing, Tuur Rommens is also out, although he is expected back either GW1 or 2 of the split.

We also have doubts over Mikey Moore and Skov-Olsen which we wont know about either way until the pre-match interviews. Whilst Skov-Olsen hasn’t set the heather alight since his move, Moore will be a big loss if not available as the young man has made himself an instrumental part of the side.

The main question for this game is whether Rohl sticks with the tried and tested 4-2-2-2 or if he mixes it up for this game. There are a couple of good reasons why he may twist this time. The first is based on the opponent themselves, where Falkirk have been strong in the midfield this season. Playing a pair in the middle does allow for more attacking output but it can run the risk of ceding control of the centre and thus inviting more of a threat onto your defenders.

The other concern about playing the usual formation is the loss of Ryan Naderi. I can understand why some fans get frustrated with Naderi as he was signed, for a not insignificant sum, as a striker and obviously, you want your striker scoring goals. What is sometimes obvious is the different ways Naderi contributes to the side, often without the ball.

His running often creates space for the forward line to get into the box unmarked, thus creating opportunities and the amount of pressing he gets through, allied with recoveries of the ball. Last weeks game was the first time we’ve seen Naderi at the very top, charged with scoring. I think you could see very quickly the change in his style as he was chasing the ball into the net and spent far more time in the box. Other games, he has been the foil with the responsibility of bagging the goals normally sitting with Chermiti.

My own view is that we should stick with what we have been doing well. It has served us well in getting to this position and with the greatest of respect, we are playing Falkirk, not Real Madrid. I would expect our players to be able to go and impose themselves on this game, regardless. I actually think the biggest issue is getting the personnel in the right parts of the team.

The backline just about picks itself at the moment, with the only real question being who starts at right back. In goals will obviously be Butland, in the centre you would expect to see Fernandez and Djiga return as the first choice partnership and on the left, there is only Meghoma with Rommens injured and Cornelius frozen out. I think at right back Tavernier will get the nod here. He provides a better attacking output than Sterling which would be better suited to a game where we would expect to dominate the ball. I also suspect Sterling will be very closely managed with an eye towards the Hearts / Celtic games.

In the middle there is slightly more choice. Raskin and Chukwuani have been getting the nod but Barron is working back into the side and it could be important to get him more minutes, whilst Mo Diomande is another who can contribute. I suspect we will see one of Raskin or Chukwuani playing alongside Barron for this game. It allows us to not overload the first two, whilst also giving Barron minutes.

In the wing positions it’s a bit of a guessing game. We have Moore, Gassama, Skov-Olsen and Antman as the out and out wingers but you could also add Bajrami and Aasgaard into contention here. We know Moore and Skov-Olsen are risks from the Friday presser but weren’t given any indication on percentage chance they make it.

I would actually contradict my earlier game-by-game statement here to say from the start, I wouldn’t play Moore in this game. It’s been pretty clear the last few games he has been carrying something and given the games ahead, I would be looking to drop him entirely for this one, allow him time to heal properly so he is ready for the split games. We can’t afford for him to miss all or even a good few of them, given his importance to the side.

Personally I would start Gassama on the left and Antman on the right for this one. It plays them in their natural position and Antman especially deserves a chance to show what he can do if given a chance. I do think if Skov-Olsen is available, Rohl will start him though as Antman seems to be another player on the periphery of Rohl’s thinking just now.

Up top, as already covered Naderi will be a big loss but I actually think we can mitigate that and get the best out of two players. I would do this by starting Chermiti in that deeper role that Naderi has been playing with Miovski up top as your “goal getter.” Unfortunately this is another one where I think I will be disappointed as Rohl doesn’t seem to rate Miovski either. I rather suspect we will see the continuation of the Aasgaard experiment as that second with Chermiti leading the line.

Regardless of personnel deployed, we should have more than enough ability to beat Falkirk but ability can mean nothing when pitted against hard work. That’s not me saying Falkirk don’t have ability but simply that they have evidenced over a season how hard they will work for each other. We will need to be on it as a team to take the three points here. I think we will but it’s not going to be as comfortable as the last few games and I predict a 2-1 victory for Rangers with Miovski and Fernandez getting the goals.