Steven Gerrard's Rangers' head to head with Brendan Rodgers' Celtic

Former Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers to host former captain Steven Gerrard as Rangers travel to Celtic Park on Sunday

Adam Smith

Data and Analysis @AdamDatasmith

Saturday 1 September 2018 16:02, UK

Celtic host Old Firm rivals Rangers in the Scottish Premiership live on Sky Sports this Sunday - but which team has the edge head to head?

Brendan Rodgers' side are enjoying a spell of dominance in Scotland, having secured their seventh successive league title last season.

However, spirits are high at Rangers after the club appointed Steven Gerrard at the helm in May and the former Liverpool captain is set to go head to head with his former manager, live on Sky Sports Football on Sunday lunchtime.

Hearts ended Celtic's 69-game unbeaten run in December last year and derailed the Hoops again this term with a 1-0 win earlier this month - and they now sit three points clear atop the table.

Meanwhile, Gerrard's men have accrued five points from the opening three league games and are one point shy of their rivals in fourth place.

Only six years ago, then-defending champions Rangers finished behind Celtic - having extended their world record haul of league titles to 54 in 2010/11.

But the Gers have struggled against their Glaswegian rivals since dropping divisions for entering liquidation in 2012, only claiming one victory on penalties in 2016 and losing 10 out of 13 meetings.

But which club reigns supreme in head to heads since 1890 - and just how dominant are the Hoops today?

HEAD TO HEADS

There have been 413 Old Firm derbies in major competitions over the past 128 years, but Rangers have claimed more victories - winning 160 compared with Celtic's 155 and another 98 ending a stalemate.

Celtic were the dominant force, head to head, until the mid-1910s, after which Rangers enjoyed 50 years of superiority in the fixture.

The Gers had won eight consecutive contests until January 1965, but a 3-1 defeat marked the beginning of the end to half a century of Old Firm dominance.

Celtic restored superiority in the 1970s, but results began to even out and a 3-0 Rangers win at Ibrox in 1986 marked the beginning of another dominant Gers' era.

But that 14-year period appeared to end with a 6-2 defeat in 2000, with Celtic claiming 19 wins to Rangers' nine in 33 meetings until 2007.

Rangers did win four successive derbies between 2007 and 2008 - but Celtic have reigned supreme in the fixture in recent years.

GOAL FEST

In terms of goals, eight Old Firm clashes have featured eight goals over the past 127 years - of which Celtic won six and two ended 4-4.

Most recently, the Bhoys breezed to a 6-2 win at Celtic Park in August 2000 and Ibrox hosted a 4-4 thriller in 1986 - which was also the only eight-goal fest to be played on Rangers' turf.