CRACKSHOT Kyogo Furuhashi and mighty Moussa Dembele have been the punishers-in-chief as Brendan Rodgers has watched Celtic cram 34 goals into the Ibrox net in his 15 derby duels.
The Japanese talisman and the French powerhouse are joint top of the hit parade with seven goals apiece as the Hoops have enjoyed 12 victories while two have been drawn and only one lost in an impressive sequence.
Dembele made his intentions abundantly clear when he thumped in the perfect hat-trick – one with the head, one with the right foot and one with the left – on an unforgettable debut in September 2016.
Rodgers was also taking his bow in the fixture as the hosts raced to a rollicking 5-1 triumph with Scott Sinclair and Stuart Armstrong also on the scoresheet.
THE EYES HAVE IT…Moussa Dembele rolls the ball beyond helpless keeper Wes Foderingham for the second of his glorious hat-trick in the 5-1 triumph at Parkhead on September 10 2016.
Dembele fired in seven goals in total against the Govan club, including a League Cup semi-final winner at Hampden only a month after his tremendous trio at a rocking Celtic Park.
The frontman, bought for only £500,000 from Fulham in a cut-price cross-border transfer just after Rodgers arrived in May 2016, continued to put the Glasgow foes to the sword when he scored in his third successive outing against them as the Hoops won 2-1 at Ibrox on Hogmanay.
He was on target again in March 2018 in a 3-2 win and he slotted away a penalty-kick the following month in a one-sided Scottish Cup semi-final with Rodgers’ side routing their opponents 4-0 at the national stadium on their way to a 2-0 success over Motherwell in the silverware showpiece a month later.
Kyogo Furuhashi caught up with the Frenchman when he curled in his breathtaking winner in the club’s 2-1 success at Parkhead just before the turn of the year with his seventh strike in a year.
The fleet-footed forward’s first goal against them arrived in the 2-2 draw at Ibrox on January 2 2023. His first five counters were registered during Ange Postecoglou’s reign.
SILENCE IS GOLDEN…Kyogo Furuhashi celebrates Celtic’s winner at an Ibrox stadium struck dumb on September 3 as Brendan Rodgers enjoys a return to the fixture. Liam Scales looks on.
The Japanese ace got the team off to a flyer this season with a pulverising volley in the 1-0 triumph in Govan in September.
He followed that up with the breathtaking effort that arced high past the clawing fingers of Jack Butland for the points-clincher at Parkhead on December 30 after Paulo Bernardo had volleyed in the opener in the first-half.
Kyogo may have been slow to start after his £4.6million arrival from J-League outfit Visel Kobe, but he is certainly making up for lost time.
Next, on four goals, are skipper Callum McGregor, Tom Rogic and Scott Sinclair.
Odsonne Edouard claimed three with Leigh Griffiths, Stuart Armstrong and Olivier Ntcham on two apiece.
Joining Kyogo on one in Rodgers’ 14 games in charge are James Forrest, Dedryck Boyata, Mikael Lustig and Bernardo.
The scene is set for another Celtic hero to be quick on the draw in today’s High Noon shoot-out.
* DON’T miss the unbeatable match report from Rangers v Celtic this afternoon – only in your champion CQN.
