The league table doesn’t lie. Right now, it presents an unpleasant truth for Philippe Clement. So much has been said and written about where Rangers have come from, but the Scottish Premiership standings at 10pm tonight will say more about where they are and where they are heading.

Aberdeen are a problem in more ways than one for Clement. The Dons are the immediate focus and danger as the Belgian prepares for his second trip to Pittodrie. Yet the fortunes of Jimmy Thelin and his players have greater resonance and perspective for Rangers. To be trailing Celtic by six points after nine Premiership fixtures is bad enough. The gap across the Old Firm divide is always the barometer, of course, and that is how Clement will be judged at every point of the campaign.

He cannot shake off the comparison with Thelin at present, however.

If Rangers were to fall nine points adrift of the Dons – and most likely Celtic given that they are at home to Dundee this midweek – then the noise around Clement would reach new decibel levels. In that situation, all the calls for time and patience, all the suggestions of improvement and progression, would be drowned out in a cacophony of criticism and recrimination.

History shows that Aberdeen are unlikely to be able to maintain their current trajectory. Talk of a title challenge from Pittodrie is extremely premature, and Thelin himself will not get involved in that hyperbole regardless of the outcome of their tenth Premiership fixture.

Indeed, the numbers behind their start – one which sees them sit level with Celtic on 25 points – perhaps point to Thelin’s side benefitting from an extended new manager bounce this term. Aberdeen have overperformed their underlying numbers by some margin, scoring 18 goals from 10.86xG and conceding just eight from 11.19xG against. By contrast, Rangers have scored 14 goals from 15.97 while slightly overperforming their xG against - having let in six strikes from 7.8. Penalties are not included across the board. Rangers have conceded twice as many goals as Celtic and scored almost half the tally of 27 from the league leaders.

The underlying numbers show Aberdeen have overperformed 

There is validity in the argument to say that Aberdeen’s form will not be sustainable over the full rigours of the campaign. Some have pointed to a favourable fixture run to kick off the season. Yet that will, rightly, mean little to the home support ahead of the visit of Rangers and it will mean even less should their side inflict another wound on Clement at a time when the Belgian cannot afford to sustain many more.

“They made an exceptional start, if you see the amount of points they have,” Clement said when asked about Aberdeen’s form and a possible title bid following the narrow, nervy win over St Mirren on Sunday. “So it's going to be a big challenge, I'm looking forward to that. It's the next challenge for this new squad also, to play there for a lot of players for the first time. I know the atmosphere from last season, so it's a good place to go. We had a really good night there last season and I want to repeat that.

“I think they did exceptionally well, if they keep this level all season then they will be in contention of that. But I'm focused on Rangers and raising our level month by month and making things better here with the squad. So I'm not busy with that, it's still how many? 29 games to go? Until the end of the season. So it's still a long way to go.”

Aberdeen have nothing to prove in terms of their title credentials given that they were never expected to be, and still are not expected to be, in contention to seriously trouble Celtic. Rangers, on the other hand, have it all to prove. A midweek at Pittodrie is an acid test for a Rangers side given the concoction of ingredients that make this fixture as unique and eagerly anticipated. Too often, Rangers have failed the test. Teams with more talent and in better form have been beaten at Pittodrie and most of the supporters who travel will do so in hope rather than expectation.

The Dons are ahead of Rangers in terms of goals for and against, however

A last-minute penalty from James Tavernier salvaged a point for Clement’s side eleven months ago. The season before last, Aberdeen were 2-0 winners in April and the night that Scott Arfield scored twice in stoppage time can be put down to a freak result. That fixture was at the end of 2022. At the start of it, Rangers were held to a 1-1 draw thanks to a Lewis Ferguson penalty.

A trawl through the record books takes you back to the 55 campaign for the last time that Rangers recorded a clean sweep of league wins over Aberdeen as four-goal successes at Ibrox were joined by 1-0 and 2-1 triumphs at Pittodrie. Rangers are on their third boss since that campaign, while Stephen Glass has been followed by Barry Robson, Jim Goodwin, Peter Leven and Neil Warnock before the appointment of Thelin this summer.

The impact that the Swede has made has been thoroughly impressive, especially given that Aberdeen sold their most influential and effective operator in Bojan Miovski.

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The rebuild of the squad has not been as wide-ranging as the one which Clement completed, but five new recruits started the win over Dundee United on Saturday. The sixth summer addition, Peter Ambrose, stepped off the bench to score a late winner, which acted as another injection of belief and enthusiasm into the squad and support that would fancy their chances against the Rangers.

After seeing his side beat St Mirren in a largely turgid and forgettable affair the following afternoon, Clement again referred to the new players who ‘are not even two months in the building’ and the ‘work in progress’ of integrating them into the squad and the style of play. The situations at Ibrox and Pittodrie are not directly comparable, but the nuances will be lost should Thelin mastermind a victory in his first match against Rangers and continue to pick up results while Clement stumbles through the opening stages of his second year in charge.

Rangers do not have the look or feel of hopeful challengers, never mind potential champions this term. A win on Wednesday would answer a question about their quality and character but many more would still need to be asked and addressed for supporters to buy into the methods that Clement is employing and the messages that he is trying to get across at present.

Those members of the squad who are new to Glasgow should know by now what the reaction will be if Rangers are beaten by the Dons.

At a time when attentions – both in terms of anger and apathy - are split between the boardroom and the dressing room, nobody at Ibrox could escape without criticism if Rangers were to fall nine points behind Aberdeen after ten matches.

The prospect of Clement being relieved of his duties remains a remote one at present, and certainly while the positions of chairman and chief executive remain to be filled on a permanent basis. That shield can only sustain fire for so long, though.

The fortunes of Aberdeen are a problem for Clement. He has one 90 minutes to solve the immediate issue. If he doesn’t, another dilemma will be added to the pile.

At that stage, it will threaten to collapse under the weight of expectation and pressure. The league table will determine Clement’s fate.