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Motherwell logo
Scottish Premiership | Gameweek 24
Jan 17, 2021 at 12pm UK
Fir Park Stadium
Rangers logo

Motherwell
1 - 1
Rangers

Cole (21')
Carroll (50'), Cole (65'), Lawless (74')
FT(HT: 1-0)
Itten (72')
Hagi (47')

Preview: Motherwell vs. Rangers - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Sunday's Scottish Premiership clash between Motherwell and Rangers, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Rangers head into their Scottish Premiership encounter against Motherwell on Sunday, hoping to secure their 16th successive league victory.

The Gers, who remain undefeated this campaign, face a Steelmen side out of form and who have failed to win any of their last 10 top-flight matches.


Match preview

Rangers manager Steven Gerrard pictured on January 2, 2021© Reuters

Twenty-one was the magic number for Rangers last weekend as a 2-1 win over Aberdeen secured their 21st league victory of the campaign, which extended their lead at the top of the table to 21 points.

Manager Steven Gerrard was delighted to see Alfredo Morelos return to form with the striker scoring a brace at Pittodrie. The Colombian had found the net only three times in the first 15 top-flight games this campaign but has since doubled his season's tally in the last three matches.

The Gers's winning run currently stands at 15 games in the Scottish Premiership, with Gerrard's side scoring 42 goals and conceding just four in this stretch since a 2-2 draw at Hibernian in September.

Rangers have an impressive record against Motherwell, having won each of their last six league meetings against them, winning by an aggregate score of 22-4.

Another victory on Sunday would see Rangers move onto 68 points, only Celtic in the 2016-17 campaign have accumulated more points at this stage of a Scottish Premiership season.

Salford City boss Graham Alexander pictured in October 2019© Reuters

Motherwell were unable to secure their first win since October as they could only draw 1-1 away at St Mirren last weekend.

Devante Cole gave the Steelmen the lead midway through the first half, but a late penalty from Jamie McGrath earned the hosts a point.

The winter period has been a difficult time for Motherwell, who have now failed to win any of their last 11 matches in all competitions.

Graham Alexander, who took charge of his first game as Motherwell manager on Saturday, does not feel that 'drastic actions' need to be taken if they are to turn their fortunes around, but they do need to start picking up points quickly before they slip into the bottom two.

Motherwell were close to becoming the first team to halt Rangers's impressive unbeaten run when the two sides faced each other in December. Callum Lang's early strike was the only goal in the game up until the 73rd minute when the Gers eventually came from behind to win 3-1.

The Steelmen have for several years struggled to secure three points against Rangers and are currently winless in their last 47 top-flight league matches against them, since a 1-0 win in December 2002 under former boss Terry Butcher.

Motherwell currently sit 10th in the Scottish Premiership but do have games in hand on the teams around them at the bottom of the table, and a surprise victory on Sunday could see them move up one place to ninth, three points above of the relegation zone.

Motherwell Scottish Premiership form: LDDLLD

Rangers Scottish Premiership form: WWWWWW


Team News

Rangers players celebrate after Celtic's Callum McGregor scores an own goal in the Scottish Premiership on January 2, 2021© Reuters

Motherwell goalkeeper Trevor Carson remains out with a knee injury, which is likely to see Liam Kelly retain his place in the starting lineup.

Defender Declan Gallagher is expected to start despite doubts as to whether the Scotsman is willing to renew his contract which expires in the summer.

Rangers midfielder Scott Arfield is expected to be ruled out for a few weeks with an ankle injury, while forward Kemar Roofe is also unavailable with a thigh problem.

Midfielder Ryan Jack remains unavailable at present but is expected to return to first-team training soon and build up his fitness in preparation to feature in the coming weeks.

Gerrard is unlikely to make many changes from the side that beat Aberdeen last weekend.

Motherwell possible starting lineup:
Kelly; O'Donnell, Mugabi, Gallagher, Carroll; Campbell, O'Hara, Polworth; Hastie, Cole, Watt

Rangers possible starting lineup:
McGregor; Tavernier, Goldson, Balogun, Barisic; Davis, Aribo, Kamara; Hagi, Morelos, Kent


SM words green background

We say: Motherwell 0-3 Rangers

The last time Motherwell failed to win 11 consecutive top-flight matches was back in 2002 and they will be hoping that they can avoid this with a victory this weekend. However, the hosts face a rampant Rangers outfit, who are expected to win comfortably.


Top betting tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting an away win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Away Win:data


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Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Rangers win with a probability of 74.36%. A draw had a probability of 16.1% and a win for Motherwell had a probability of 9.52%.

The most likely scoreline for a Rangers win was 0-2 with a probability of 12.51%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-1 (10.4%) and 0-3 (10.03%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (7.66%), while for a Motherwell win it was 1-0 (3.18%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 7.7% likelihood.


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Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
Championship Group
1Celtic000080265478
2RangersRangers000072234975
3Hearts000046341262
4Kilmarnock00004334951
5St Mirren00003843-543
6Dundee00004454-1041
Relegation Group
1Hibernian00004451-739
2Motherwell00004651-537
3Aberdeen00003549-1435
4St Johnstone00002446-2231
5Ross County00003256-2430
6Livingston00002259-3718
 
First Phase
1Celtic33246380265478
2RangersRangers33243672234975
3Hearts33195946341262
4Kilmarnock33131284334951
5St Mirren33127143843-543
6Dundee331011124454-1041
7Hibernian33912124451-739
8Motherwell33813124651-537
9Aberdeen33811143549-1435
10St Johnstone33710162446-2231
11Ross County3379173256-2430
12Livingston3339212259-3718


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