Keith Wood believes what Ireland can expect from Scotland this weekend will be dependent on which Finn Russell turns up at the Aviva Stadium.
Ireland can make it four from four if they beat the Scots but face a side that saw off England at Murrayfield in Round 3 of the Six Nations.
Speaking on Monday Night Rugby, former Ireland captain Keith believes the threat posed by a "dangerous" Scotland side will hinge on the performance of their creative outlet Russell.
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"I think some of it comes down to Finn Russell - as to which Finn Russell turns up because he has been brilliant or abject and he still hasn't got to that point of consistency," said Keith.
"You can see the good things and then he packages it together for 80 minutes against England.
"The ones who coach him say that he is extraordinary and that's what they can see. It's whether he can back that up one week after the other."
Keith also believes that Scotland's coaching team have made alterations to try and get the best out of Russell more consistently.
"I also think the coaches have taken some of the pressure off him. I think they're recognising some of the faultlines. Kicking to touch is something that he can either do incredibly poorly by kicking it only 10 yards forward as opposed to 25 or 30 or going all out and kicking it dead which he has done consistently in his career. And so they've just taken that skill off him."
He also feels that there are some parallels between Russell's style and the way his Scotland coach Gregor Townsend played during his own career.
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