Huge sighs of relief will ring round Ibrox on Saturday as Premier Sports Cup holders Rangers return from their temporary Hampden home in the second of two all-Premiership ties following Motherwell’s victory over Dundee United on Friday.
The Copland Stand will not be full as delayed renovation work continues, but the switch from the other side of Glasgow will be a welcome boost not only financially but also in terms of atmosphere.
Dundee’s chances of a cup shock would also be greater if their nine-game unbeaten start to the season had not been ended last weekend as Rangers got back to winning ways after their own Old Firm reality check.
The Dark Blues’ 2-0 defeat by Ross County in Dingwall means they have now gone three games without a victory, while the Light Blues recovered from their derby loss to Celtic by beating Dundee United 1-0 to secure their first away win.
It kept Rangers five points behind early Premiership leaders Celtic and Aberdeen and, just as importantly, eased some of the tension around the club after John Bennett’s announcement that he was standing down as chairman citing health problems exacerbated by fan criticism.
Even playing at Hampden, Philippe Clement’s side have won all three of their domestic home games, their only reverse coming against Dynamo Kyiv in Champions League qualifying.
History is also heavily on their side, with Dundee having to go back to October 1951 for a League Cup win over Rangers – 3-2 in the final.
A Steven Davis goal was enough for the Glasgow side to win their last League Cup meeting two years ago at Ibrox.
And, overall, Rangers are 13 unbeaten against Dundee since losing at Dens Park in November 2017 and have won 17 in a row at Ibrox since goals from Claudio Caniggia and Steven Milne secured the Dark Blues their last win there in March 2001.
However, Tony Docherty’s current side have shown they can give Rangers a bit of a fright, following up April’s goalless draw at Dens Park a month later by leading twice at Ibrox before losing 5-2.
The visitors will be hoping Clement and his players this time have one eye on Thursday’s Europa League visit to Malmo.
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