Kris Boyd, a former Rangers forward, has warned that his old club faces a make‑or‑break situation in what has turned into an extraordinary Scottish Premiership campaign. The Rangers will travel to Tynecastle on May 4 to take on league leaders Hearts, and Boyd says that a loss would effectively end any chance of a title for the Glasgow side. "Rangers have to go there and win, or it's done," Boyd told Sky Sports, underscoring the gravity of the fixture.
He added that he has probably repeated the sentiment several times already, but the stakes are undeniably high. "Celtic will be sitting at home buzzing with that result at Ibrox," he noted, implying that a defeat would hand the Old Firm rivals a massive psychological edge.
The race for the championship has been anything but straightforward this season. Early in the campaign, Celtic secured a win over Falkirk that propelled them into second place, while Rangers suffered their first home league loss of the year at the hands of Motherwell under the stewardship of new manager Danny Röhl. That setback allowed Hearts to re‑assert their dominance, and they later cemented their lead with a dramatic Edinburgh derby victory over Hibernian, who were reduced to nine men.
The win gave Hearts a three‑point cushion over both Celtic and Rangers with four games remaining. For Boyd, the upcoming clash is the final test of Rangers' resolve. "Rangers have to go there [Tynecastle] and win, or it's done. That might be me saying it's done for the fourth or fifth time," he said, emphasizing that the club cannot afford another slip‑up.
He believes Celtic will be watching anxiously from Ibrox, hoping to see the Rangers falter so they can close the gap. He also highlighted the psychological battle that Hearts presents.
"When you look at Hibs going 1‑0 up, they might have been saying ‘this could be ours again’, but Hearts have just found another way to go and keep winning a game of football and ask questions of Glasgow's big two," Boyd explained, pointing out that Hearts have consistently found ways to disrupt the traditional powerhouses. Boyd praised Hearts manager Derek McInnes, noting that even critics of McInnes would likely name him as the ideal coach for a Hearts side. "There have been people who have questioned Derek McInnes – his mindset, the way he's gone about it.
But if you ask any of those Hearts players who they would have as their manager, it would be Derek McInnes," Boyd said. He also acknowledged the role of owner Tony Bloom and the club’s analytics department, but stressed that ultimate success still hinges on strong leadership and a united dressing‑room. "Tony Bloom and the Jamestown analytics have taken a lot of credit and rightly so, but it still needs someone to have full belief and have full control of a dressing room because you can lose it," Boyd warned. The former striker believes Rangers have the depth to compete, but they must see contributions from the bench as well as the starting eleven.
"I see a team that's all together. You need players coming off the bench wanting to have an impact, not only in the match they're playing but to stake a claim the following week," he said. This sentiment reflects the importance of squad rotation as the season reaches its climax. Hearts' head coach Derek McInnes echoed a similar mindset on Sky Sports, insisting that his side cannot afford to be complacent.
"Anybody who says they're not interested in how the others are doing is telling lies. I would always watch the games. For us, the way the kick‑offs were today we had to just focus on Hearts," McInnes explained, indicating that his team is fully aware of the pressure from Rangers and Celtic. He added that while winning this match does not guarantee an easy path forward, it provides a psychological boost.
"Just because you win this one, it doesn't make the next one any easier but I think psychologically this does us no harm. But we still need to perform.
No one is going to give us it, don't rely on anyone else. It's all on us," McInnes said.
Rangers manager Danny Röhl also addressed the situation, emphasizing resilience and belief. "My job is to go forward, lead them, I will lift them. We can be disappointed, but we lift them again, I give them the belief," he told Sky Sports News.
Röhl dismissed any notion that the season is already decided. "It's not over, this is the part in this split, you have to carry on. It makes no sense to think it's over," he asserted.
He reminded fans that the final whistle of the season will ultimately decide the champion, but until then, the Rangers must keep pushing. "If there's the final whistle at the end of the season, then it's over. My team did well so far and I have no doubts that we can do again, to take four wins, but it's not easy, we know this, and with this point we go forward.
We keep believing in what we are doing and we have the chance to turn the next game back to our side," Röhl concluded. The stakes are clear: Rangers need a victory at Tynecastle to keep their title hopes alive, while Hearts will look to extend their lead and cement a historic season. Celtic, meanwhile, will be watching from Ibrox, hoping that a Rangers slip‑up will bring them back into contention.
As the Scottish Premiership heads into its final stretch, every point matters, and the drama promises to intensify with each passing match.