David Martindale knows exactly what Livingston are walking into at Ibrox this weekend and he spent the entire international break glued to Rangers footage trying to prepare for it.
The Livi boss admitted he used the downtime to study Rangers recent games closely, watching the matches against Kilmarnock, Dundee and Hibernian as he tried to understand how new Head Coach Danny Röhl has reshaped the side.
For all the analysis, though, he made it clear: the Rangers team his side will face tomorrow bears very little resemblance to the one they pushed deep into stoppage time earlier in the season.
The last meeting, a narrow late defeat for Livingston, in what was now-axed Head Coach Russell Martin’s sole Scottish Premiership victory with the Gers, is meaningless now, according to Martindale.
“I don’t think it really matters,” he said.
“There’s been a change of shape, change of manager and the style of play’s different.”
He also stressed that Rangers are “in a different place” and the tone suggested he knows full well they’re facing a far sharper, more aggressive side than the version he met earlier.
The venue matters too. Livingston don’t pretend otherwise.
A visit to Ibrox is a completely different animal, and Martindale openly admitted his team must adjust.
At home they try to impose themselves, away to Rangers, reality bites.
“Away from home you’ve sometimes got to tweak things,” he said.
Even then, he was quick to acknowledge the gulf in quality.
“There’s still a lot of talent within that squad - a lot of money’s been spent on that forward line.”
That comment alone underlines what he expects: a tough afternoon, a huge challenge, and a Rangers side capable of overwhelming opponents if they hit their stride under Röhl.
He added that Livingston “go there confident” - but that’s the kind of line every manager must say publicly.
Martindale also explained why facing Röhl is a completely different task from preparing for Russell Martin’s Rangers.
He described the tactical shift clearly: “Russell was more possession-based whereas Danny will play forward pretty early.”
In other words, Livingston are bracing for intensity, directness and freedom - hallmarks of Röhl’s early work.
He even admitted the break was spent “re-educating” the staff on Rangers’ new approach, something that underlines just how different this Rangers side is becoming under the new manager.
And while Livingston do have several players returning from injury, Martindale’s update highlighted how fragile their squad still is.
Scott Pittman is back, Stevie May has returned, and Ryan McGowan, who spent 23 days in a hospital bed - is only easing into training again.
Conor McLennan and Cammy Kerr have returned to training too, and midfielder Aidan Denholm has begun running.
“There’s a lot of positives,” he said, but it’s far from a full-strength squad and he knows it.
For Rangers, the takeaway is simple: Livingston are preparing seriously, they know this isn’t the same team they faced earlier in the season, and Martindale sees clearly the step-change brought by Röhl.
Rangers do however, have injury issues of their own – John Souttar, Derek Cornelius, Mikey Moore, Bailey Rice, Kieran Dowell and Rabbi Matondo will all be absent tomorrow whilst Liam Kelly, Yousef Chermiti and Dujon Sterling remain doubts.