Last year’s treble winners knew that Celtic would be put on championship-clinching alert at Kilmarnock on Sunday if they slipped up at Almondvale, as they had done earlier in the season.

The Hoops faithful had their own disappointment to deal with tonight as Villarreal ended their UEFA Cup campaign at the quarter-final stage.

But the two more points dropped by their bitter rivals means that the title win that has been an inevitability for weeks is now imminent.

The result also means Rangers have yet to confirm their place as runners-up in the Bank of Scotland Premier League as Hearts still have a slim mathematical chance of catching them.

Michael Mols had given Rangers a half-time lead but youngster McMenamin’s equaliser with 10 minutes remaining had been reward for a second half that the home side had dominated.

The goal that Mols lashed home in the 24th minute was as good as he has scored all season in a campaign that has seen him net 12 times but also struggle for form, touch and, by his own admission, motivation.

The Dutchman first won the corner that put pressure on the home defence and then, after Gavin Rae had retrieved Paolo Vanoli’s half-cleared delivery and crossed for Steven Thompson to head down, swivelled acrobatically to fire past Roddy McKenzie.

That had been only the second threat to the home side’s goal, with McKenzie having made a comfortable catch after Thompson had tried to loft the ball over him from a tight angle on the right, having got the better of Marvin Andrews in a penalty box tussle.

Livi had almost opened the scoring themselves by then with David McNamee having wasted a fine opportunity with a weak shot that Stefan Klos was able to get behind at his near post after Vanoli had been out-muscled in the box.

Lee Makel, Jamie McAllister and Scott McLaughlin all came close before the break but none could force Klos into an actual save.

The home side also had to make a change just before the half hour mark when striker Derek Lilley limped off having taken a knock in a clash with Zura Khizanishvili. McMenamin, who had scored against Celtic at the weekend in Livi’s 3-1 Tennent’s Scottish Cup semi-final loss, replaced him.

Referee Willie Young had a strong penalty appeal to consider when McKenzie grabbed hold of Thompson in the box after failing to make the clearance for which he had left his line.

Young’s decision to play on infuriated the Rangers fans, who soon cheered up when news that Celtic were 2-0 down arrived from Spain.

Vanoli made up for his earlier error by winning a free-kick on the edge of the box shortly after the restart and Ronald de Boer was only inches too high with a sweetly-struck set-piece.

Livi should have equalised just after the hour mark however when Makel, having won a corner, combined with Burton O’Brien to swing in a cross onto the head of Andrews.

It was perfect for the big man but the Trinidad and Tobago international could only head wastefully over from six yards.

Livi made a double substitution with 16 minutes remaining by sending on young legs belonging to Jon Paul McGovern and Richard Brittain in place of Rubio and McLaughlin.

McGovern swung in a cross that Burton O’Brien headed just wide but the reprieve was short-lived when McMenamin converted Livi’s next opportunity with aplomb.

There was still time for Mols to miss a great chance to win it for Rangers when he fired at McKenzie after a Gavin Rae shot had been deflected into his path, with Thompson having done all the spade work with a powerful run.