Livingston captain Alan Lithgow used to marvel at Jermain Defoe on television but insists he is ready for the challenge of taming the Rangers marksman.
The West Lothian outfit will attempt to continue their unbeaten start to the campaign when they travel to Ibrox on Saturday.
Livingston stunned Steven Gerrard’s side at the Tony Macroni Arena a year ago and defender Lithgow admits keeping the likes of Defoe and Alfredo Morelos in check will be imperative in their hopes of repeating that feat.
He said: “I used to watch Defoe when I was younger, growing up.
“I loved his style of play and any time he got a yard he was hitting it – and his finishing is unreal.
“With Alfredo Morelos, he’s young and energetic and everything you could want in a striker, but Defoe is intelligent.
“Both are different players and difficult to play against but it’s a challenge and I’m happy to take it on.
“This game can be daunting to some people because of Rangers’ stature but we look forward to them, we don’t fear anyone in the league.
“They’ll want their next performance to be a big one following the defeat to Celtic so I’m expecting a tough game.”
Livingston also host Rangers in a Betfred Cup quarter-final on September 25, with Aberdeen the visitors in the league next weekend.
But Lithgow insists the players are relishing a difficult run of matches.
He said: “It’s tough games but it’s games you want to play in, especially going to Ibrox and there being 40,000 thousand fans there.
“You’re playing against some of the best players in the league and these are the games you want to play in.
“We had a favourable start to the league with the fixtures but now we’re going into a more difficult period.”
