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Ally McCoist has of Rangers’s win over Livingston (broadcast 25/9 from 19:00) that Steven Gerrard is going to need to have a good talk with Connor Goldson and Filip Helander.
The Gers reached the semi-final as a deflected strike from Glen Kamara in the fifth minute proved to be the only goal of the contest.
Rangers kept their third clean sheet in a row. But questions were asked of their defenders, with Lyndon Dykes, in particular, causing problems. There was certainly an argument that Helander was extremely fortunate not to be sent off for a challenge on the Livi striker.
And after the game, McCoist suggested that a worrying trend is emerging, and it is something that Gerrard is going to need to address before they are really punished.
“The two centre-backs are not handling a physical threat at all,” . “Edouard, I thought, was excellent against them at Ibrox. The big boy here, Lyndon Dykes, I thought, was terrific. Cosgrove on Saturday. You’ve got Ikpeazu at Hearts. They’re going to have to toughen up.
“You certainly don’t want to see your centre-backs getting bullied as they have been recently. I think Steven will have to sit them down and have a good talk to them.”
Helander has made a promising start to life at Ibrox – and it must be noted that he did not play against Celtic. Rangers are yet to concede a goal with the 26-year-old on the pitch. He, obviously, cannot take all the credit for that run. But it is extremely impressive given that he arrived when Rangers’s season had just started.
Nevertheless, you could understand why some fans have their concerns about the partnership with Goldson. And Gerrard may be wondering whether he does need to make a change in the near future.