Dundee United's John Rankin urges a relaxed approach against Celtic in Scottish League Cup final
Sunday 15 March 2015 17:58, UK
Dundee United midfielder John Rankin believes they must try to adopt a relaxed approach if they are to defeat Celtic and win Sunday's Scottish League Cup final at Hampden Park.
United made it to the Scottish Cup final last season but lost to St Johnstone, with Rankin feeling they were ‘uptight’ and struggled to handle the pressures of the big occasion.
"We are all very enthusiastic and desperate to go for Sunday," said Rankin. "To be honest, I think we just need to enjoy the occasion this year.
"There were too many of us uptight last year and we never actually enjoyed it.
"I think this year, if we go and actually enjoy ourselves, it will hopefully end in a very good day."
Contentious
Sunday's game is the second of four between the two sides in the space of 13 days, with the Scottish Cup quarter-final last weekend ending in a 1-1 draw which saw a number of contentious incidents.
The red cards shown to Hoops defender Virgil van Dijk and United's Paul Paton - sent off instead of Calum Butcher in a case of mistaken identity - have since been rescinded.
The SFA also chose not to charge United’s Nadir Ciftci after deciding an alleged intentional kick in the head of Celtic skipper Scott Brown was not proven.
Despite those high-profile concerns episodes, Rankin is not convinced any ill-feeling will spill over into the League Cup final.
"What happens in the last game is done," he added. "We are not going to get involved in what happened the week before.
"You can only affect the next game that's put in front of you and for us that next game is Celtic. And then Celtic again and Celtic again. It's exciting.
"People might say it's boring for the fans when you have four games in a row against the same team but it's challenging for the players because each game is different and you have to rise to each occasion."
