- 1 Falkirk vs Rangers: two out-of-sorts teams cross paths
- 2 Falkirk: one goal in three games, and even that was an own goal
- 3 Rangers: first win finally secured at Aberdeen on a penalty
- 4 Football Prediction Falkirk vs Rangers
- 5 First, a word on our free picks
- 6 No commitment from us
- 7 Information changes
- 8 Your role
- 9 Responsible gambling comes first
- 10 Legal age
- 11 About the images…
Falkirk vs Rangers: two out-of-sorts teams cross paths 
Wednesday night under the Sky Sports lights. Falkirk take on Rangers at 21h00 at the Community Stadium.
On paper, it’s a familiar fixture. In reality, it’s a serious test for the newly promoted side against one of Glasgow’s heavyweights. The perfect chance to shake up the pecking order live on TV.
Both sides arrive in shaky form, though for different reasons. Falkirk are still waiting for their first league win, with one point from three games and 11th in the table.
Rangers have four points and sit seventh, which is nowhere near good enough for a club with their standards. Derek McInnes needed four matches in all competitions before landing his first win.
European football has weighed heavily on Rangers’ start. Dumped out in Europa League qualifying, they then fell in a Conference League play-off against Jablonec, losing 4-3 on penalties after a 1-0 first-leg win and a 1-0 second-leg defeat.
With no European football left, Rangers’ season now centres entirely on domestic action. This midweek trip suddenly feels like a must-win if they want to climb the table.
Falkirk come into this one with a very different backdrop. They finished sixth in the Scottish Premiership last season after returning to the top flight for the first time in 15 years, but they haven’t backed it up this summer.
The recent history of this fixture does the home side no favours either. Rangers won 6-3 and 5-2 on their last two visits to the Falkirk Stadium.
The midweek schedule makes this one a little trickier to read. Falkirk are out of the cup and have nothing else to juggle, while Rangers arrive with no European hangover and one clear domestic target.
Falkirk: one goal in three games, and even that was an own goal 
John McGlynn’s side have one point from three league matches. Two defeats and a draw, with just one goal scored across the lot.
That lone goal wasn’t even one of the Bairns’. It came via Colby Donovan’s own goal in the 2-1 defeat at Celtic Park.
Before that, Falkirk lost 2-0 at home to St Mirren and then ground out a 0-0 draw at Motherwell. That point is still their only league return this season.
The Scottish League Cup has not given them much comfort either. They finished second in their group with seven points from four games, only to be knocked out at that stage.
The injury list goes some way to explaining the sluggish start. Aidan Nesbitt, Craig Sibbald, Ethan Laidlaw, Joe Gardner, Keelan Adams, Tom Lang and Finn Yeats are all unavailable.
Up front, McGlynn is leaning on Ben Parkinson to get them off the mark. That won’t be easy against a defence that just kept a clean sheet at Pittodrie.
The contrast with last season is stark. Sixth place on their return to the top flight after 15 years away, Falkirk had already shown they could live with the big boys.
11th place now points to a finishing problem. One goal in three games, whoever the opposition, makes every match a slog to win.
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Rangers: first win finally secured at Aberdeen on a penalty 
Rangers finally got their league season moving last weekend. The 1-0 win at Aberdeen, sealed by a Lawrence Shankland penalty, was their first Scottish Premiership victory of the campaign.
The opening weeks had been poor, no way around it. A 1-1 draw at Dundee United and a 1-2 home defeat to Hibernian piled early pressure on McInnes.
Their only real attacking burst came in the League Cup, where they thumped St Mirren 5-1. That remains the club’s only convincing display since the restart.
The European exit against Jablonec still stings. After winning 1-0 in the first leg, Rangers lost 0-1 in the second before going down 4-3 on penalties.
In terms of personnel, things look a lot healthier than on the other side. Only Youssef Chermiti and Jose Cifuentes are sidelined, and McInnes should name the same side that won at Pittodrie.
Shankland remains the man carrying the threat up top. His penalty at Aberdeen was enough to settle a tight game, which tells you all you need to know about his importance right now.
The table is the real concern in Glasgow. Seventh after three matches with four points, Rangers are miles off where they expect to be.
The lack of European football could work in their favour over time, though. With no continental travel to juggle, McInnes can put out his best XI every league weekend.
Probable Falkirk XI: Bain ; Strain, Neilson, Henderson, McCann ; Barbrook, Spencer ; Ross, Krauhaus, Fodrey ; Parkinson
Probable Rangers XI: Pandur ; Sterling, Fernandez, Makhanya, Penrice ; Devlin, Neil ; Curtis, Kim, Gassama ; Shankland
Football Prediction Falkirk vs Rangers
Our prediction: Rangers to win
One goal in three league games, and that was an own goal by an opponent: Falkirk’s attack is the problem here. Against a side who just kept a clean sheet at Pittodrie, the Bairns could easily end up blanking again.
Seven absentees for Falkirk also tilt the balance, while Rangers have only two out. The 6-3 and 5-2 wins on Rangers’ last two visits to this ground also hammer home how lopsided this matchup usually is.
The price on Rangers still looks decent for a favourite of this size, mainly because their start has been worrying. Still, the visitors get the nod, with Shankland leading the line and a home side struggling to find the net.
The only real question mark is Rangers’ inconsistency since the restart. The draw at Dundee United and the defeat to Hibernian show this side can still shoot itself in the foot, which is probably why the odds are a little kinder than usual.
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