Vanja Dragojevic Prepares for Old Firm Derby After Belgrade Experience

Vanja Dragojevic has tasted one of world football’s most notorious derbies. Now he’s preparing for another that, he’s been warned, might just top it.

The 20-year-old Rangers midfielder grew up in the white‑hot chaos of Belgrade’s ‘Eternal Derby’ with Partizan. Flares, fury, a city split in two. Yet as he settles into life in Glasgow, the message from those around him has been clear: you haven’t seen anything yet.

From Belgrade fire to Glasgow cauldron

Dragojevic struck his first Rangers goal in Sunday’s League Cup win over St Mirren, a tidy finish that did more than open his account. It booked a Premier Sports Cup quarter-final at Ibrox against Celtic next month – an Old Firm tie he has been hearing about since before he even signed.

“We're really happy that [the Celtic cup tie] will happen,” he said, still riding the high of his breakthrough goal but refusing to get carried away.

There’s a schedule to respect. A European assignment on Thursday comes first, and he was quick to stress that. Yet the prospect of the derby hangs over everything, a looming occasion that already crackles in the background.

“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.”

A derby veteran at 20

This is not a youngster walking blind into the storm. Dragojevic has already been through the furnace.

“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.”

He understands what it means when a fixture becomes a cultural event, when the noise in the stands carries decades of history and resentment. That experience is part of what attracted Rangers to him; a player who won’t flinch when the temperature rises.

Now he wants that same feeling in Glasgow blue.

“I'm really happy here and I want to have the privilege to play in this one,” he said, the anticipation obvious even as he tried to park thoughts of Celtic for another day.

Embracing Glasgow, eyeing Celtic

Away from the pitch, Dragojevic sounds almost disarmed by how quickly life in Scotland has clicked.

“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. I'm looking forward to doing everything I can for this club.”

The goal against St Mirren felt like a marker – a sign he is not just passing through, but embedding himself in a team and a support that demand impact on the biggest days.

That next defining day is coming. A Serbian derby-hardened midfielder, a first Rangers goal in the bank, and an Old Firm quarter-final on the horizon.

If Belgrade shaped him, Glasgow’s greatest fixture might just define what comes next.