Kris Boyd v Robbie Keane in Old Firm showdown

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Never mind Robbie Keane, Kris Boyd is still the top man

By Jamie Milligan

Glasgow will come to a standstill on Sunday as Scotland’s big two clash in the latest episode of one of the world’s oldest and most famous rivalries.

All eyes will be on Ibrox Stadium, as league leaders Rangers go to war with title challengers Celtic in what promises to be a pulsating battle.

The Gers have a seven point lead over their neighbours and will see this as a chance to bury Tony Mowbray’s long suffering side once and for all.

Celtic, however, can smell blood after reducing the gap at the top last weekend from an unmanageable ten points to a much more attainable seven.

The match is already being billed as the perfect platform for a certain talented Irishman to work his magic. It could be however, the perfect chance for another talented forward to take centre stage and weave his own magic on a match that means so much to so many.

If Robbie Keane is Celtic’s main goal threat then there can be no doubt that Kris Boyd is by far Rangers most potent weapon.

For years now, defenders have lain awake at night, tossing and turning, wondering how they’re going to halt the goal machine. And for years now they have risen in the morning, wearily, still none the wiser as to how they can possibly stop the Rangers number nine.

However, not all SPL defences are reaching for the Night Nurse. There is one defence left that Boyd is yet to conquer.

For all the goals Boyd has scored in Scottish football, he has managed just one solitary strike against Celtic. That goal came back in 2007 when Boyd struck against Celtic at Ibrox. Since then, the hit man has been firing blanks.

His critics argue that until he improves this record, he cannot be compared with the great strikers of the past.

Boyd failed to score in multiple outings against the Tic when he was with Kilmarnock. He made 13 appearances against Celtic for the Ayrshire club, but started just six.

In Boyd’s defence, since he has been at Ibrox, Walter Smith’s safety first tactics have restricted him to few opportunities in these matches. Smith, in the past, chose to overlook Boyd and played just one striker up front, usually a more industrious, mobile forward

In fact, in the four years Boyd has been banging the goals in for the light blues, he has started just six old firm games. And when you consider the fact that he has completed just 2 of these matches, all of a sudden his supposed abysmal record doesn’t seem so abysmal after all.

Things look like they are slowly but surely changing and Walter Smith appears to be more trusting of his record breaking goal scorer when it comes to these titanic clashes.
Boyd has gained this trust by working hard, addressing his shortcomings and reinventing himself as a much better all round player.

In fact, the Kris Boyd of the present is almost unrecognisable from the Kris Boyd of the past. The Kris Boyd of the past would stand with his hands on his hips, refuse to move and all in all be about as much use as a chocolate fireguard.

These days however, he looks like a completely different player. Boyd will now do things that used to make him weak at the knees. The striker now regularly chases full backs, runs for balls and drops deep to link up with the rest of the team.

Boyd’s improvements as a player means that Walter Smith can go into Sunday’s match knowing he has two forwards in Kenny Miller and Kris Boyd who will run themselves into the ground as well as providing a massive goal threat.

Boyd thrives on any defensive frailties and it is for this reason that I am backing Boyd to silence his critics when he takes to the field of play against Celtic on Sunday.

Celtic’s defence has been their Achilles heel this season. Going forward the Hoops will play some wonderful football but will then lose a stupid, needless goal from a set piece or from a school boy mistake. It has been happening all season long and I don’t see it changing this weekend

It is this sort of defending that a top striker dreams of and Boyd may get a couple of goals this Sunday without trying too hard. Especially, if the Celtic defence carries on defending the way it has been.

Whatever happens, whoever steals the show, it is clear that this weekend is going to be a pivotal moment in the race for the title.

Will it be a photo finish, or will it be a slow swagger towards the finish line for Rangers?

Let the battle commence.

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