‘ Rangers the team to beat now’

LIVINGSTON midfielder Marvin Bartley admits he is convinced that Rangers are the team to beat in this season’s Premiership.

The Lions head to Ibrox tomorrow with hopes of building on the point they took at the Tony Macaroni Arena in August. However, club captain Bartley appreciates the challenge that awaits them, with Steven Gerrard’s side having strengthened their position at the summit with last weekend’s Old Firm victory over Celtic.

Rangers then backed it up with another impressive scalp in Europe, this time beating Standard Liege in Belgium on

Europa League duty on Thursday. And Bartley believes it will be take a considerable effort from any team to keep pace with the Ibrox side.

Bartley ( inset) said: “I think they’re showing the form of pre- Christmas last year, and they have a deeper squad so they can freshen things up. I don’t think they could have done that last season. They have a big enough squad to maintain it throughout the whole season so it’s going to be a massive challenge for anybody to finish near them.”

Bartley concedes he is bracing himself for an exhausting afternoon in the middle of the park. He added: “I look at my position first and foremost and the rotations they have in there are unbelievable.

“When you watch them, they don’t really stand still.

“When somebody has got the ball and somebody else is marked in a more advanced position, then that player will move and someone else will take that slot, it’s like clockwork.

“It’s one thing knowing what they do but another thing trying to stop them.”