Writing on the BBC Sport website on 14 September (05:35pm), the journalist said that the Gers boss will have earmarked the game at McDiarmid Park as one of the “easier games” on the back of a “brutal run of fixtures”.

He added that a result and performance in Perth is “paramount” for the Light Blues, otherwise, Beale could “follow the same path” as his predecessor Giovanni van Bronckhorst.

“Amid a brutal run of fixtures, Beale will have marked St Johnstone away as one of the easier games in the calendar,” said O’Neill. “But he only has to look at the end of his predecessor’s reign to know that this is no gimme.

“The last time Rangers went to Perth in the league, a James Brown wonder goal consigned Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side to a 2-1 defeat, and just two games later the Dutchman lost his job.

“With Real Betis in town next week for the start of the Europa League group stages, the pressure will only ramp up further for Beale and Rangers.

Must win

There is absolutely no doubt about it, Beale simply has to win this game to keep his job at Rangers and stop some of the noise that has been surrounding him.

St Johnstone are currently propping up the SPFL table after failing to win a match so far this season, so it is the ideal fixture for the Light Blues manager.

But it also means that there will be no excuses if they don’t come away with anything other than a convincing victory to keep pace with the sides above them.

It will have felt like an age for Beale since his side last took to the field and he will be glad to see that the game is almost here given all the speculation around his future over the past couple of weeks.

The Gers manager will have put a lot of thought into what his best side is and, even though there is the clash against Real Betis in the Europa League next week, he can’t afford to be taking any chances with his team selection.