Have you ever seen Gerrard win the league? It was a chant aimed at the former Liverpool and England midfielder during his playing days. It followed him north of the border when taking over as manager of Glasgow Rangers. In his first two seasons in charge of Gers, he failed to stop Celtic’s dominance.
All that changed in spring when Stevie G’s Rangers swaggered across the finish line virtually unchallenged, ripping the title from bitter rivals Celtic while ending their hopes of winning a historic ten league titles on the bounce. Something that cost Neil Lennon his position as boss of the Bhoys. What next for Gerrard? Some say Glasgow only has him on loan until Jurgen Klopp leaves Anfield. Others suggest it’s time for him to take a job in the Premier League and learn the ropes. Neither seems likely at present, as Gerrard looks to be in it with Rangers for the long haul. The leading betting sites from London bookies to Vegas sportsbooks make that a smart move and have Rangers as hot favourites to defend their hard-earned title.
Players set for an early return
The Scottish Premiership is one of the first major European football divisions to return from the summer break. Followers can catch the opening round of matches from the 2021/22 campaign on Saturday, 31 July. That means, for the first couple of weeks, Scottish football will attract a higher than average television audience and a little more attention than the players involved are used to.
The hype will quickly die out when the English Premier League opens on Friday 13 August when newly-promoted Brentford host Arsenal in a London derby. That puts the pressure on Scottish football to shine under the spotlight, attempting to win new fans and followers. Critics say the game north of the border is nothing more than a boring two-horse race every season between Rangers and Celtic. They are correct that it has become a shoot-out between the two Glasgow giants, but most of the top European leagues aren’t competitive. How many teams have won the last 10 Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Serie A or even Premier League titles? Remember, these leagues are almost double the size of the Premiership, with plenty more money available. Let’s take French football, for example. PSG have won seven of the last ten titles. In Germany, Bayern Munich has won each of the last nine renewals. In Italy, Juventus have bagged nine of 10. Perhaps the Premiership deserves a little more respect than it’s currently getting from residents of planet football.
Gerrard has the X-Factor
The league isn’t as high profile or exciting as it was in the 90s when Paul Gascoigne, Ally McCoist and Gennaro Gattuso, to name but three, were around. But there can be no denying Gerrard has brought back a bit of the X-Factor that had been missing since Dutchman Dick Advocaat waltzed into Govan parading several Dutch internationals.
Due to last season’s title win, the Rangers are back in the Champions League and will hope to build on their impressive form in the Europa League in the previous two seasons. Making the group stages would be fantastic for all involved, especially the money men inside Ibrox, but successfully defending their Scottish title is Gerrard’s number one priority in the coming months as the season gathers pace.
Traders have their say
Will we see Jermaine Defoe and his Rangers teammates celebrate two in a row, or will Celtic roar back under the guidance of new manager and former Australian national team boss Ange Postecoglou? Only time will tell, but football fans can get an idea of what to expect from the current betting odds offered by the leading bookies worldwide.
Rangers are almost certainties to win the league in the opinion of traders who are confident enough to keep Celtic at arm’s length in an attempt to drum up interest. Rangers fans will get a better price if they wander into the cup multiples specials or even the betting for them to make it to the UEFA Champions League group stages.
