Rangers v St Mirren: Scottish Premiership predictions, best bets and odds

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The transition to a new era under Derek McInnes has not gone without a hitch for Rangers so far, but there are no points for artistic merit in football – instead, nine points from a possible nine recently has quietened the doubters.

Over at St Mirren, things are going rather smoothly – beyond expectations, even. The Saints were unbeaten heading into Saturday’s game with Celtic, and they showed exactly why against Martin O’Neill’s men, taking the lead before eventually succumbing to two goals in the second half.

Rangers, make no mistake, are in for a game on Wednesday evening…

Rangers v St Mirren tips

St Mirren +2.00 Asian Handicap @ 8/15 (Bet365)

Match Goals Range: 2-4 @ 8/15 (Bet365)

Both Teams to Receive a Card @ 2/5 (Bet365)

Odds courtesy of Bet365. Correct at the time of publication and subject to change.

Unwelcome visitors

The Asian handicap lines for this game enable us to accept two things: Rangers are deserved favourites, but a price of 2/7 is completely disrespectful to St Mirren’s fine start to the campaign.

Would anyone be surprised if Rangers prevailed on home soil? Absolutely not, with the Gers gliding through the gears in recent weeks. 

Indeed, their 1-0 win over Motherwell at the weekend is humdrum on paper, but in reality was anything but – Rangers could have scored a hatful of chances, but for some poor finishing and a Man of the Match performance from Alex Paulsen in the ‘Well goal.

The fact remains that Rangers have won those last three outings by a single-goal margin, and there is undoubtedly a feeling that St Mirren are the real deal, rather than just an early-season mirage.

They may lack the quality to go and beat a Celtic or a Rangers, but they will certainly make it very difficult nonetheless – and this Asian handicap selection supports such a theory.

Tip: St Mirren +2.00 Asian Handicap @ 8/15 (Bet365)

Explanation: If St Mirren win, draw or lose by a single goal, our bet wins. If they lose by two goals, our stake is refunded. If they lose by 3+ goals, our bet is settled as a loss.

Expected goals

Rangers have only scored six times in their five Scottish Premiership outings to date.

However, their Expected Goals (xG) tally is 11.3, which suggests they could and should have scored far more – anyone that saw them against Motherwell on Saturday will be nodding their head.

So there’s certainly scope for improvement in front of goal then, while St Mirren can certainly play their part in an entertaining game in midweek – their five Premiership games thus far have yielded 13 goals in all.

While Both Teams to Score was a tempting selection, this 2-4 Match Goals pick also accounts for the potential of a 2-0 win to Rangers.

Tip: Match Goals Range: 2-4 @ 8/15 (Bet365)

Explanation: Our bet lands if there are two, three or four goals in this game.

Card factory

Some interesting stats and trends are starting to emerge from the Scottish Premiership so far.

Typically for a McInnes team, Rangers are getting stuck in – they average 13 fouls per match so far, which is the third-highest rate in the division.

Meanwhile, St Mirren have picked up 14 yellow cards… only Aberdeen have received more.

These card bets are often situational – some games are ‘cleaner’ than expected, while other contests erupt from a single foul or incident. 

But the case for fouls and cards is certainly there given how these two teams have performed so far; this particular selection has landed in five of their combined last six outings.

Tip: Both Teams to Receive a Card @ 2/5 (Bet365)

Explanation: Our bet lands if both Rangers and St Mirren receive at least one card each, red or yellow.

Rangers v St Mirren: Match result odds

Rangers: 2/7 (Bet365)

Draw: 17/4 (Bet365)

St Mirren: 15/2 (Bet365)

These odds, correct at the time of publication, are subject to change.