Rangers issued 'disaster of a season' warning as case made for Aaron Ramsey to face Celtic

Mark Hatelely fears ​Rangers could be heading for a "disaster of a season" if they fail to beat Celtic at Ibrox on Sunday.

Rangers are currently competing across three fronts, sitting second in the Scottish Premiership, through to the quarter-finals of the Europa League and into the semi-finals of the Scottish Cup.

However, as things stand, the 2021-22 campaign remains trophyless with Rangers having missed out on the first silverware of the season following defeat to Hibs in the Premier Sports Cup semi-final.

The defending champions are three points behind in the title race with seven matches remaining and Hateley insists his former club must beat Celtic this weekend to keep their season on track.

“Rangers are in a place right now where it looks like it could be a great season or a disaster of a season,” Hateley told BETDAQ. “They’ve not won anything yet. They’ve lost the League Cup, which Celtic have already won. The importance of winning a championship probably outweighs anything, especially with the Champions League that comes with winning that this year, the financial rewards that come with it, and what that then takes away from the runner-up (next season). It’s vitally important to win the league but as every Celtic or Rangers fan will tell you, it’s very important to win every trophy. So this game against Celtic is massive, it’s very, very big. Especially this season.”

Hateley won 11 major honours during his time with Rangers, including six league titles, and has enough experience to predict that this weekend's fixture could decide the championship.

“The fixture is 100% pivotal to the title race," he added. "The congestion for the season that Rangers are having now, especially with this month of April coming up –