South Africa centre-back Olwethu Makhanya has fast become a fan favourite at Rangers, but Sunday's Old Firm derby against Celtic at Ibrox in the Scottish League Cup (Premier Sports Cup) quarter-finals will be unlike any experience to date.
Celtic have won 14 of the last 15 Scottish Premiership titles, surpassing Glasgow rivals Rangers as the most successful club in Scottish league history.
However, Rangers remain the most successful team in the League Cup with 28 titles to Celtic's 22. St. Mirren won the cup last season, but after Rangers beat them 5-1, their title defence is over. The winner of this Old Firm clash will thus likely go down as the favourites to lift the trophy.
Celtic lead the Premiership by five points, but second-placed Rangers are picking up steam largely thanks to Makhanya's form and will face the Hoops at Celtic Park on Sep. 20 - a week after the League Cup tie.
Key details
Date: Sep. 13 at 1 p.m. in South Africa (12 p.m. in Scotland & WAT, 2 p.m. EAT)
Venue: Ibrox Stadium
Stage: Scottish League Cup (Premier Sports Cup) quarter-finals
How to watch on ESPN Africa: The match is scheduled to air on ESPN 2 (DSTV channel 219), with ESPN's channels also available on Disney Plus to South African viewers
Old Firm rivalry overview and away fan ban
After fans clashed and stormed the pitch at Ibrox in March following Celtic's Scottish Cup penalty shootout win over Rangers, both teams are banned from taking away fans to each other's home games during all competitions administered by the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) in 2026-27 - including this Sunday's League Cup tie.
The rivalry is among the fiercest in world football, with Celtic traditionally enjoying strong support from Irish, Catholic and left-leaning supporters. Rangers have traditionally been associated with Protestantism and British Unionism.
There may well be fans who fell in love with either side without any religious or political influence. Rangers, for one, have won themselves South African admirers in recent years purely by signing Bongani Zungu on loan in 2020-21 and Makhanya more recently.
Makhanya's partnership with Fernandez
While Zungu struggled to get regular game time under his belt, Makhanya has settled in quickly and cemented himself as a starting centre-back alongside Nigeria's Emmanuel Fernandez.
Rangers have conceded only once in their last four games, winning all of them. Although Derek McInnes' formations have varied, Fernandez and Makhanya have started the last nine games and Gers are settling around them.
Fernandez stands 194 cm tall and Makhanya 188 cm, with the Nigerian more inclined to take on aerial duels and Makhanya becoming known for carrying the ball out of defence -- as South African centre-backs have often been known to do, from Mbulelo 'O.J.' Mabizela to Mbekezeli Mbokazi.
Celtic scouting report
Although they were dumped out of UEFA Champions League qualification by LASK, Celtic have got the domestic season off to a perfect start with six Premiership wins out of six and a 4-0 League Cup win over Dundee United.
Denmark's Kasper Høgh started upfront for the Bhoys in their 1-0 league win over St. Johnstone on Wednesday. However, it looks likely that Makhanya will come up against Camilo Durán on Sunday.
The Colombian can play out wide or upfront, but has been the primary focal point of the Celtic attack this season - with three goals and three assists in six Premiership games.
Martin O'Neill brought him on late in midweek and the Celtic boss was unimpressed by what he saw without Durán on the pitch.
"Our main man only came on in the last 10 or 15 minutes, so it gives you food for thought," the Northern Irishman said, as per BBC Sport.
"[Durán's] just been class. He looked tired in the game on Saturday (a 2-1 win over St. Mirren), but I'm not surprised for the amount of things he does for us, both with the ball, which is terrific, and also the work that he does off it.
"He's second only to Daizen Maeda in terms of closing players down. So, I wanted to try and see if we could do without him, and the answer is probably not."
On-loan Chelsea striker Shumaira Mheuka (18) is another option, but Durán is the clear favourite to start. His link-up play with Celtic's wingers gives the Hoops fluidity, making them difficult to stop on the break.
Makhanya and Fernandez will need to be on top of their game, but a win would be the clearest proof yet of Rangers' resurgence and that Makhanya is in Glasgow to make a mark.