Scott McDonald's excellent strike handed SPL leaders Celtic a vital victory over bitter rivals Rangers in the Old Firm derby at Ibrox.
SPL champions defeat Gers at Ibrox to extend lead at the top
Scott McDonald's excellent strike handed SPL leaders Celtic a vital victory over bitter rivals Rangers in the Old Firm derby at Ibrox on Saturday.
Gers were on top for the majority of the first half but failed to break the deadlock, although they had appeals for a penalty waved away after Gary Caldwell handled in the area.
Striker Kris Boyd spurned a one-on-one with Hoops goalkeeper Artur Boruc in the second period as Walter Smith's side continued to enjoy the better of possession.
However, the home fans were silenced when McDonald rifled home on 58 minutes, as Gordon Strachan's men opened up a seven-point advantage over their foes at the top of the table.
Revenge
The Scottish champions took their revenge for the 4-2 defeat at Celtic Park back in August in the second Old Firm derby of the season.
Kris Boyd's 18 goals this season saw him finally given the nod against Celtic after failing to make a single appearance in the last five Old Firm derbies and having notched just one goal in the famous fixture ahead of this game.
The home side were again without the injured Madjid Bougherra in the heart of defence, with the only change from the win over Hibernian the inclusion of Charlie Adam at the expense of Kyle Lafferty.
As expected, there was no Aiden McGeady for Celtic following his much-publicised spat with boss Strachan but the visitors were boosted by the return of skipper Stephen McManus, Barry Robson and Paul Hartley.
With a draw arguably suiting Celtic more, Rangers carved out the majority of the chances in the first half.
Steven Davis tested Boruc early on, with the Celtic goalkeeper called into action to block a decent strike, before the Northern Irishman sent the rebound high and wide across the face of goal.
Then followed a lovely move which saw Pedro Mendes play the ball to Kenny Miller on the left flank.
He skipped past Andreas Hinkel before setting up Boyd for the shot but the striker hesitated and was closed down before he could unleash.
Rangers had the ball in the back of the net with 11 minutes on the clock when Kirk Broadfoot bundled home in a packed goalmouth, but referee Craig Thomson ruled Boruc was fouled amid the scrum and the goal was disallowed.
Harmless
Mendes and Miller then combined again with the striker off target from 10 yards, before Georgios Samaras finally carved out an opportunity at the other end, although his effort trundled harmlessly wide of the upright.
Miller had another chance to open the scoring before the interval when he pounced on a through ball from Boyd but blasted over under pressure from the Hoops defence as the first half ended goalless.
Rangers started the second half the way they had ended the first by putting pressure on their hosts. This time, Barry Ferguson was the provider but Boruc was able to block Boyd's shot.
The striker had another go when Miller was hauled down on the edge of the box by Caldwell and he stepped up for the set-piece. His effort cannoned off the Celtic wall before eventually breaking to Steven Whittaker, who fired wide.
Instead, it was Celtic who opened the scoring after 58 minutes. Samaras' flick-on was met by McDonald and he left Rangers goalkeeper Allan McGregor with no chance with a superbly struck volley from just inside the area.
McGregor was called into action again when Hartley tried his luck with a speculative volley from distance but this time the keeper was up to the task and able to gather comfortably.
Rangers were in desperate need of a goal but it was their rivals who almost found the back of the net again when Hartley's free-kick found Samaras at the back post and McGregor just managed to hold the downward header.
