Projected rankings sees Rangers rocket up Champions League charts as Celtic learn would be Europa League fate

The Premiership title race is set to go to the wire this year, so neither Rangers nor Celtic can afford to take a seat at the big table for granted.

It's usually been reserved for the Hoops in recent seasons, with Ange Postecoglou ensuring that the automatic Champions League group stage spot was theirs, with Rangers required to battle through the qualifying rounds in order to join them. They managed it under Gio van Bronckhorst, but fell short last August.

This time could be the last that our champions are given a direct ticket, however. Our coefficient ranking will determine future access so miss out this time, and it could be a while before the top dogs can forget about qualifiers. Of course, the group stage experience hasn't exactly been a magical experience beloved by fans. The less said about Rangers' foray, the better, while Celtic have hardly set the tournament alight either, managing just one victory in 12 games.

The shiny new format UEFA have dreamed up means there will be at least 10 games to play. Given past performance, an extra two matches against experienced Euro campaigners may be the last thing our representatives need.

But there's encouraging signs that Rangers, in particular, might not get quite as tough a time of it if projected seedings are anything to go by. Football Rankings have been tracking the coefficient of the clubs currently occupying the Champions League positions in leagues across Europe.

With Rangers currently on 62.000 ranking points, that puts them in Pot 2 based on the other qualifiers as things stand. And while they know from bitter experience that it's far from easy at elite European level, there are plenty of teams in Pots 3 and 4 that they've already encountered and competed with.