Preview: St Johnstone vs. Rangers - prediction, team news, lineups

Rangers will look to make it three wins in a row on Saturday when they travel to McDiarmid Park to take on St Johnstone as Scottish Premiership action returns following the international break.

The Saints have only been defeated once so far this season, yet they have not been able to record a victory in the league, which is something the club is desperate to put right.

Match preview

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After failing to qualify for the Europa League, the full focus can now return to the Scottish Premiership for St Johnstone, which might be a welcome situation for Callum Davidson.

He has yet to see his side pick up a victory in the league this season, despite drawing three out of their four opening games, and Saturday will be another opportunity for them to break that record.

Sitting just three points above the foot of the table, there is a real need for the Saints to start earning more points, but they will need to defeat Rangers in the league for the first time since 2017 in order to do that.

However, St Johnstone do have far more recent experience defeating the Gers, as they knocked them out of the Scottish Cup last season on penalties as they went on to win the competition.

Davidson's squad will have to step up massively in an attacking sense if they are hoping to get any result from the game, with the Saints having the worst record in the league this season in front of goal.

So far, St Johnstone have only managed to score once in the opening four fixtures, and even that was an own goal by Motherwell's Stephen O'Donnell.

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With both squads fresh from the recent break, they will each be eager to get back to league action on Saturday, with Steven Gerrard hoping for a less stressful period for his club.

The start of the season has proven to be difficult for Rangers, with COVID-19 having an impact, but they still managed to qualify for the Europa League and find themselves third-placed in the Scottish Premiership.

The defending champions are just one point behind Hibernian and Hearts who each sit above them, meaning a victory on Saturday has the potential to take them to the top of the table depending on other results.

Fresh from a 1-0 victory in the Old Firm derby during their last outing before the international break, Rangers will be keen to continue their strong form as of late.

A goal from central defender Filip Helander was enough to earn the win against Celtic, with Gerrard's squad having proven themselves to be defensively sound so far this season.

The Gers have kept six clean sheets already across all competitions in the 2021-22 campaign, with two of those coming in the opening four Scottish Premiership fixtures.

This is something that will give them plenty of confidence as they compete against the worst attacking team in the league as Rangers look to extend their unbeaten run to six games.

Team News

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St Johnstone were handed a blow during the international break when Cameron MacPherson suffered a dislocated shoulder during a friendly match that had been organised, meaning he will be unavailable for the foreseeable future.

This is the latest injury for the club as he will join Murray Davidson, who has a shoulder problem, and Craig Bryson who are both also unfit for this fixture.

However, Lars Dendoncker was able to get minutes under his belt during that game, meaning he could be in line to make his debut after joining on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion in the summer.

Eetu Vertainen and Ali Crawford were also provided opportunities in that friendly as Davidson looks to get all of his new signings up to speed ahead of a busy period for the Saints.

After scoring the winning goal against Celtic, there was a fitness concern over Helander after he picked up a knock during Sweden's victory against Spain, but he was able to recover and play against Greece, meaning he should be fit to start.

However, one player that Gerrard will be without is Nathan Patterson as he had to pull out of the Scotland squad during the recent international break following a knock he received in the game with Austria.

St Johnstone possible starting lineup:
Clark; Muller, Dendoncker, McCart; Rooney, McCann, Craig, Devine, Hendry, Wotherspoon; May

Rangers possible starting lineup:
McCrorie; Barisic, Goldson, Helander, Balogun; Aribo, Davis, Kamara; Roofe, Kent, Morelos

We say: St Johnstone 0-2 Rangers

Both Rangers and St Johnstone will want to kickstart this period of the season with a positive result as they look to build momentum early on in the season.

However, the Gers should be too strong for the hosts in this particular game, as their attacking qualities and experience is likely to give them the edge.