Vanja Dragojevic Prepares for Rangers v Celtic Clash

Vanja Dragojevic has already felt the heat of Belgrade’s Eternal Derby. Now he is counting down to what he has been told is something even bigger.

Next month, the 20-year-old midfielder expects to step into the white-hot glare of Rangers v Celtic in the Premier Sports Cup – a fixture he has been repeatedly warned is “maybe the biggest derby on earth”.

Dragojevic struck his first Rangers goal in Sunday’s League Cup win over St Mirren, a key moment that helped set up the quarter-final showdown with their Glasgow rivals. The strike did more than open his account; it nudged him closer to a stage he has been dreaming about since signing.

“We’re really happy that [the Celtic cup tie] will happen,” he said, the excitement clear, even as he tried to rein it in.

For now, he insists his focus is elsewhere. Rangers have a game on Thursday and the midfielder knows the demands at Ibrox leave little room for daydreaming. But the stories he heard before arriving in Glasgow are hard to ignore.

“When I spoke with lots of players before I came here, everyone said this is maybe the biggest derby on earth. And maybe the craziest one – in a positive way. So I’m really happy that I have the privilege to be part of it and maybe play in it.”

This is not a player naïve to derby chaos. Dragojevic has already been through three or four Belgrade derbies with Partizan, matches that stretch far beyond the white lines.

“I played in three or four Belgrade derbies. It was really hard and fired up. In Serbia, it’s not just about the football. It’s really about much more than this. But I like this.”

That edge, that sense that a game carries the weight of a city, clearly appeals to him. Glasgow, though, has taken him in with a warmth that has caught him off guard.

“I enjoy it here. This is a great country, with great people. I’m surprised how warm the people are here. When I came to the club it was so easy to adapt. Everyone in the city is so nice. I’m feeling really happy here.”

Content off the pitch, growing in confidence on it, Dragojevic now has a clear target in front of him: force his way into the XI and earn that Old Firm debut.

“I’m looking forward to doing everything I can for this club,” he said.

The Belgrade fire is already in him. The Glasgow cauldron might be next.