Kick-off: 1330, 31/07/2021
Stadium: Ibrox
TV: Sky Sports Football
With 23,000 fans allowed into Ibrox, Rangers can begin the new Scottish Premiership campaign by again celebrating last season’s stunning title triumph.
Steven Gerrard’s side ended Celtic’s dominance north of the border when topping the table by 25 points.
In four clashes with Livingston, Rangers didn’t concede a single goal, prevailing 2-0, 1-0 and 3-0 following an early 0-0 draw.
Let’s go with 23/20 for the champions to win 1-0, 2-0 or 3-0 here as our initial Rangers vs Livingston prediction.
A Look At Rangers’ Betting Odds
Rangers will head into their title defence in fine spirits following last Sunday’s 2-1 friendly win over Real Madrid.
Having previously drawn with Arsenal and Brighton, the Light Blues showed plenty of spirit to come from behind against the Spanish giants.
Rodrygo put the visitors ahead early on but Fashion Sakala levelled on 55 minutes and Cedric Itten bagged a 77th-minute decider soon after Real had defender Nacho dismissed.
Gerrard hailed the efforts of Itten, who is looking to build on a debut season which saw him score six goals but only make nine starts out of his 37 appearances.
The 24-year-old Swiss forward also netted in the 2-2 draw with Arsenal and a recent 1-0 victory at Partick.
Gerrard said: “He has probably been the stand-out attacking player over the course of pre-season. He has been available for the most minutes, he hasn’t missed a training session.
“He seems more settled in the city now that himself and his girlfriend can get about and socialise a bit more.
“You can see that in his training and performances. He has scored three goals and he certainly looks ready.”
Looking at the Rangers vs Livingston odds, we like 16/5 for Itten to score the last goal again here.
A Look At Livingston’s Betting Odds
Livingston finished sixth last season, 47 points adrift of Rangers but crucially nine clear of any relegation worries.
Manager David Martindale has brought in 10 new signings in a busy summer and admits they face a baptism of fire.
Livi will also meet Celtic, Hibernian, Aberdeen and Hearts before the end of September and Martindale said: “We have last season’s top four in the first six league games.
“We have got an incredibly hard start but that’s why we are in football, these are the games we live for.”
There have been mixed results in the Premier Sports Cup but wins over Brechin and Cowdenbeath were enough to sneak through to the second round.
Even so, this daunting test could come too soon for the visitors, who may be forced to adopt a damage limitation approach.
Let’s finish off our Rangers vs Livingston betting tips by taking 11/5 for the champions to lead 1-0 at half-time.
Additional stats
Last result:
RANGERS 4-0 Aberdeen – Joe Lewis (og), Kemar Roofe (2), Jermain Defoe
LIVINGSTON 3-1 Cowdenbeath – Jamie Todd (og), Bruce Anderson, Craig Sibbald
Head-to-head: Livingston 0-3 Rangers, Livingston 0-1 Rangers, Rangers 2-0 Livingston, Livingston 0-0 Rangers
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