The first major silverware of the season will be handed out at the national stadium on Sunday, and it is not easy to predict with any great confidence which of the Glasgow clubs will be lifting it.
Celtic go into the final as holders, looking to retain the first trophy Ange Postecoglou won as their manager, while for Rangers, victory would see the League Cup back in the Ibrox trophy room for the first time in a dozen years.
The Premiership table would suggest that Celtic have to be favourites, holding as they do a nine point advantage over their rivals, but Rangers remain unbeaten under Michael Beale, and after making hard work of some earlier wins, look to have gathered a bit of momentum.
Lifted confidence
There have still been a few narrow victories, but the manner of recent successes against Hearts and Livingston will have lifted confidence further, as will their performance in the 2-2 draw with the league leaders at the start of 2023.
That game is the only one Beale hasn’t won, and his record of 13 wins out of 14 makes for impressive reading.
Until you look at Postecoglou’s stats!
The Australian has lost just a single domestic match in the entire campaign, the 2-0 reversal against St Mirren in mid-September. Since then, his side is unbeaten in 22, have won nine on the bounce (and conceded just two goals) since the Ibrox meeting, and barring that draw, it’s over two months since anyone got within a goal of them.
It was mid-December the last time Celtic failed to score at least two goals in a game – improbably, that was against the Dons – and in more than half the matches since, they have netted at least four times.
Phenomenal record
The record is phenomenal, it speaks of utter dominance, and yet, since taking up the reins as Rangers manager, Michael Beale has not lost any ground, and has matched Celtic’s results.
Rangers don’t score as many goals as their city rivals, and they certainly concede more, but they have found a way to win over and over again, and that has given them solid reason for hope at Hampden.
If the league meeting on January 2 is anything to go by, we could be in for a classic.
Celtic got off to a flier that day, Rangers rallied to lead and looked the more likely to go on to win, only for Kyogo to snatch a late equaliser.
Will that have any bearing on tomorrow’s encounter? Probably not, but Rangers are going to have to hit those heights again if they are to be in with a chance of claiming the prize. There is a swagger and intensity about how Celtic play, and it would be a major surprise if they let their levels drop at all.
Beale’s side will have to not only match that, but quite possibly find something a little extra if they are to come out on top.
Given their form, they might well be capable of that, and it would be no shock if we require extra-time and penalties to separate the pair.
That said, Celtic do have more quality, and on balance, I would expect them to prevail.
Best wishes to Dons chairman
Those of us who ardently follow Scottish football, and perhaps take it a bit too seriously at times, got a sharp reminder this week there are bigger things out there.
First came the news that Dons Chairman, Dave Cormack, was to undergo heart surgery and then on Tuesday, the announcement that Hibernian owner, Ron Gordon – a close friend of Dave’s – had passed away at the age of 68.
I did not know Ron, but everything I have heard and read suggests he will be a big loss to the club and the game in general, and of course, much more importantly, to his grieving family. I would like to add my condolences to the many tributes which have been paid in recent days.
With the imminent arrival of Alan Burrows as Chief Executive, I hope Dave feels less urgency to rush back to work, and that he allows himself the time he will need to recover from his operation. My best wishes are with him, Fiona and their family
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