Rangers will begin their journey to try and reclaim the Scottish Premiership title this Saturday when the 2022-23 campaign kicks off with a journey to Almondvale Stadium as they face Livingston.
The visitors finished the previous campaign in the bottom half of the table, but they were able to wrap things up finishing seventh, solidifying their position.
Match preview
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Livingston's midtable finish last season is something that the club will have been pleased to secure, but now the focus is about kicking on to get to push into the top half this time around.
The Lions managed to keep 10 clean sheets throughout the previous campaign, and they will need to continue those defensive qualities against a team that managed to score 80 times.
David Martindale's men have been bust already this season due to the Scottish League Cup group stage, which they were able to qualify from with three wins out of their four matches.
While Livingston were defeated by Inverness in one of those matches, they responded to that immediately by defeating Kelty Hearts 2-0 to get back on form.
Sean Kelly and Phillip Cancar got themselves on the scoresheet in that game, which is something they will be searching to repeat this weekend.
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Nobody ended last season stronger than Rangers as they picked up 16 points from their final six games, and ended their campaign in an undefeated fashion which is form that they will want to take into the beginning of this campaign.
They have not had an ideal pre-season to this point, having only played three full games, and while they defeated Blackpool and West Ham United, the same cannot be said for their most recent outing.
The Gers competed against Tottenham Hotspur, but ended up falling short following a Harry Kane brace, despite the fact Antonio Colak gave them the lead in the first half.
For Rangers, the focus is on getting their title back after Celtic won the Scottish Premiership last season with a four-point gap between them in the end.
Despite that, the Gers had the best away record of the season as they only lost twice in the division which they will now be pushing to continue.
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Team News
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After being sent off in the group stage of the Scottish League Cup recently, the hosts are set to be without Esmael Goncalves, who remains suspended for them.
Despite that, they will be able to welcome back Max Stryjek, and he should slot himself straight into the starting lineup as the Lions aim to keep a clean sheet this weekend.
Colak is one of the new Rangers signings, and after he found the back of the net against Tottenham, he will be hoping to retain his place leading the line.
John Souttar is another of the fresh players that the Gers have brought in over summer, and his experience at the back is something that will play a big impact this season.
Livingston possible starting lineup:
Stryjek; Devlin, Fitzwater, Obileye, Montano; Shinnie, Kelly, Pittman; Nouble, Bahamboula, Anderson
Rangers possible starting lineup:
McGregor; Tavernier, Souttar, Goldson, Barisic; Lundstram, Kamara; Matondo, Lawrence, Kent; Colak
We say: Livingston 0-2 Rangers
Livingston have been resilient in the build-up to this season, and that is something that should lead to them providing a stern test for the visitors this weekend.
Rangers will be planning on being involved in the title hunt again this season, and nothing other than a perfect start will do for them, which they should secure here.
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