FOOTBALL: WARNING: Nail-biting SPL title race could seriously damage

ALEX MacDonald believes his old side can snatch the title from Celtic by 'forgetting about the Old Firm clashes and concentrating on beating the rest'.

Doddy was part of the lengendary Rangers side that lifted the Cup Winners Cup against Moscow Dynamo in Barcelona in 1972 and is still a regular at Ibrox

He has watched Alex McLeish's rejuvenated side establish a three point lead at the top of the table going into the winter break and believes they will snatch the title after a nerve-jangling championship race.

MacDonald believes that although the two remaining clashes against Celtic will be titanic struggles, they should not be billed as title deciders.

In fact he feels that Rangers best chance of landing the title is by ensuring they take maximum points from their 10 other SPL games.

He explained: "Rangers and Celtic may be close together in the table but the gap between them and the rest is as wide, if not wider than it has ever been.

"Beating the others will be crucial to the outcome of the title."

"My view is that if Rangers can beat all of the rest, they'll take the pressure off the Old Firm games and win the title although it could be very, very close.

"Three points may not seem like much of a lead at this stage, but depending on how well the two teams start the second half of the season it could turn out to be a massive advantage.

"For Rangers it's vital that they get back in the groove smartly when they re-start the campaign over at Easter Road at the end of the month - that will be a tough test.

"If they can keep that three point advantage intact for a few weeks, it will pile the pressure on Celtic and as each week goes by that could well prove decisive.

"It might mean a complete tactical contrast when the teams meet at Parkhead on March 8, if Rangers can go into that fixture not needing to defeat Celtic.

"It will reprepresent a significant bonus for Alex McLeish if he can approach that game looking to win it of course but with the comfort of knowing he can just set his team up to make it difficult for Celtic."

It may be yet another two-horse race for the title, but MacDonald believes that on their own turf some of the SPL also-rans are capable of defying the odds.

The former Hearts boss said: "The teams that have done well against the Old Firm this season - Motherwell and Aberdeen are the best examples - have been the teams that have included the most kids in their line-ups.

"These youngsters are just starting their careers and have no hang- ups about meeting the Old Firm. They want to make their mark on the game, especially infront of the television cameras.

"They will compete every minute of the match, they have the naivety of youth and will make themselves absolute pests until the final whistle.

"If you're side is made up of players that have been brought up over the years on a diet of losing to the big two, they are conditioned to failure and will not have the devil-may-care approach of youth.

"It's not easy going up against the Old Firm, time after time and still be able to retain the deep seated confidence you need if you are going to get a result.

"Rangers and Celtic will face some tough games in the closing three months of the league season, and there is the possibility that both clubs will drop points along the way.

"That's why I believe that if Rangers can get their act together and beat the rest, it will be enough to win the title back without relying on the two Old Firm games."

MacDonald is the last man to split the Glasgow giants in the table when Hearts finished second in the eighties and he is full of praise for what McLeish has achieved in his 13 months at the club.

He said: "For me, some of their football has been magnificent. They've played some great one touch stuff and their movement off the ball to is a joy to watch.

"It is clear that McLeish has generated a team spirit in the dressing room that is carrying them through games in a way that was not so evident before be arrived. Players are playing for each other, there are no players hiding and it's good that he's bringing young, Scots players through from the youth system.

"If you watch Rangers team now, they are finishing matches the stronger side, so I believe a lot of hard work was done during the summer to give players the sort of engines that would get them through a long hard season.

"They are a fitter team, with good competition for places and of course having been beaten twice to the title by Celtic, they have that extra motivation.

"The Ibrox fans also deserve a pat on the back. They are demanding, but I am amazed how patients they have been and that helps the players.

Rangers still lack that killer touch when they get near the penalty area, but they have improbed dramatically.

"I believe they have progessed enough to hold their nerve and win the Championship, but nothing comes for nothing, they will need go out there and make it happen themselves."

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