Rangers and Celtic settle for a point each in Old Firm bore draw

Russell Martin was handed some much-needed respite as Rangers fought out a goalless draw against Celtic at Ibrox.

The Gers boss was under mounting pressure after a 6-0 defeat by Club Brugge in the Champions League play-off on Wednesday night which saw them exit 9-1 aggregate.

The ramifications of defeat against their oldest rivals could have been dire for Martin but his side were worth a point in a dreadful encounter, albeit they remain six points behind the Parkhead outfit after four William Hill Premiership fixtures.

In the 32nd minute of a first half low on quality but high on adrenaline, Gers defender John Souttar had the ball in the net only to be ruled offside.

The second half was much of the same with few clear-cut chances or goalmouth incidents, with even the energy and passion failing to mask the poor fare served up for the lunchtime kick-off, which was bulging with subplots.

Both clubs went into the game on the back of embarrassing Champions League play-off exits in midweek.

Celtic lost in a penalty shootout to unfancied Kairat Almaty in Kazakhstan while the hosts returned from their 6-0 second-leg drubbing by Club Brugge in Belgium with fans gunning for Martin following just three wins in 10 games.

Celtic fans, for their part, had been hitting out at their club’s board for not bolstering the squad with appropriate quality before the Kairat games.

There was the strangest atmosphere inside Ibrox where Gers chairman Andrew Cavanagh and representatives of the club’s new US-based owners 49ers Enterprises, including vice-chairman Paraag Marathe, were in the directors’ box and the whole party could not have been impressed.

Former Aberdeen striker Bojan Miovski – signed from La Liga side Girona on Saturday – was