At the age of 37, Allan McGregor announced his retirement from international duty last night.

That's quite a blow for Scotland - despite his advancing years, the Rangers stopper has been in fantastic form since returning to Ibrox in the summer.

Alex McLeish, we're told, tried and failed to convince him to stick around.

Not the best news for Scotland, but perhaps not the worst news for Rangers - they'll hope McGregor will be fresher, better rested and at a lesser risk of injury without a host of internationals each season.

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A solitary change to the Rangers team that drew at Easter Road on Friday night. Borna Barisic has recovered from illness and is restored to the left-back position, with Andy Halliday dropping to the bench.

Aberdeen are without 18-goal man Sam Cosgrove through suspension. That means Stevie May leads the visitors' line.

And there's a first start for 17-year-old midfielder Dean Campbell, who has played four matches off the bench this term and scored against Livingston.

Niall McGinn also starts for Derek McInnes', with James Wilson and Greg Stewart benched after the draw with Celtic.

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Hearts boss Craig Levein makes three alterations to the starting line-up that overcame Dundee on Saturday.

Jake Mulraney, Olly Lee and Craig Wighton are elevated from the bench.

Callumn Morrison, Peter Haring and David Vanecek drop out.

Gary Caldwell makes two changes after watching his team climb off bottom spot in the Championship with victory over Dundee United.

Club captain Stuart Bannigan is back from injury and Lewis Mansell starts up front. Miles Storey and Joe Cardle drop to the bench.

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Image source, BBC Sport

Rangers: McGregor; Tavernier, Worrall, Goldson, Barisic; Jack, Kamara, Arfield, Candeias, Kent; Morelos.

Substitutes: Firth, Katic, Halliday, Coulibaly, Davis, Lafferty, Defoe.

Aberdeen: Lewis; Ball, McKenna, Considine, Low; McGinn, Shinnie, Ferguson, Campbell, McLennan; May.

Substitutes: Cerny, Stewart, Gleeson, Wilson, Halford, Devlin, Ross.

Image source, BBC Sport

Image source, BBC Sport

Heart of Midlothian: Zlamal; Godinho, Souttar, Berra, Garuccio; Mulraney, Lee, Clare, Djoum; Wighton, Ikpeazu.

Substitutes: Doyle, Haring, Bozanic, MacLean, Dikamona, Keena, Morrison

Partick Thistle: Hazard; Elliot, Anderson, Saunders, McMillan, Penrice; Spittal, Bannigan, Slater; Mansell, McDonald.

Substitutes: Sneddon, McGinty, Doolan, Harkins, Storey, Fitzpatrick, Cardle.

Image source, BBC Sport

At Pittodrie, Aberdeen surged into the lead when Sam Cosgrove struck from the penalty spot after Gary Mackay-Steven was chopped down in the box.

Rangers hit back through Joe Worrall, before Andy Considine missed two glorious chances to win it for the hosts.

Hearts looked to be easing their way into the last four after Chistophe Berra powered a header home against an insipid Thistle.

But Gary Caldwell's men rallied after the break, and Christie Elliott's goal earned them a replay in Gorgie.

The floodlights are on, the music is belting out and the scent of bovril is wafting through the air...tonight is Scottish Cup night, and what a thunderous evening it could be given the matches on show.

By the end of the night, we'll know who has joined Celtic and Inverness CT in the semi-finals as Rangers host Aberdeen and Partick Thistle travel to Heart of Midlothian in the last-eight replays.

The former is a fixture that's produced some cracking goals amid the usual bundle of controversy, angst, and mayhem, as well as five red cards this season alone. The prize for the winner? A date with holders and treble-chasers Celtic.

At Tynecastle, Hearts will hope to end Thistle's cup dream and earn themselves a second semi-final of the season against another Championship opponent in Inverness.

What with it being a Champions League week, there's no live TV coverage of either game. But we've got you covered with radio commentary and updates on these pages, as well as highlights on Sportscene from 23:00 on the new BBC Scotland channel.

Image source, BBC Sport