Rangers will look to extend their winning run when they host Kilmarnock at Ibrox this afternoon, with Derek McInnes expected to freshen up his starting XI after a marathon international break saw 13 squad members away on duty.
The Light Blues sit just two points behind Celtic at the top of the Premiership following their 1-0 Old Firm win at Parkhead, which came just seven days after they had thumped Martin O'Neill's team 3-0 to set up a Premier Sports Cup semi-final showdown with Aberdeen.
Rotation on the cards after international exertions
McInnes was able to field the same starting XI in the double header with Celtic to devastating effect, despite still being without long-term absentees Lawrence Shankland, Cammy Devlin and Youssef Chermiti. His reign at Ibrox is now firmly up and running after a rocky start.
But with 13 members of the squad returning from international duty, changes might be on the cards to ensure Rangers can continue their charge by claiming a sixth straight win in all competitions this weekend.
Defensive tweaks expected
Ivor Pandur has firmly cemented his place as Rangers' number one goalkeeper, but a tweak in the backline could be on the cards. Emmanuel Fernandez has played every minute of the season so far and, after featuring for Nigeria in Russia on Wednesday, might sit out the clash with Kilmarnock.
That would see loan signing Ben Godfrey come into partner Olwethu Makhanywa, who McInnes may also be tempted to rest because the defender played in all three of South Africa's fixtures during the international break.
Midfield and attack changes
Tochi Chukwuani has found regular minutes hard to come by at Ibrox in recent weeks but could be introduced in favour of Minsu Kim, who jetted off to Asia to make his senior bow for South Korea last week. The Dane could slot into a midfield three and play alongside Dan Neil and Nico Raskin.
Rotation could also come at the top end of the pitch. Stuttgart loan signing Badredine Bouanani came off the bench as a late substitute in both legs of the double header against Celtic but could come in at the expense of Ryan Naderi, who also won international recognition for the first time with the Czech Republic during the break.
With no European football to contend with anymore this season, Rangers now have plenty of gaps in between matches to keep the squad fit and firing. But small tweaks now and again could give McInnes and his team the extra edge in their bid to chase domestic silverware on all three fronts.
