Helander Heads Home for the Champions

WDTCR was covering Sunday's OF game for FollowFollow.com so our match report was posted on Follow Follow after the game. If you didn't catch it on FF you can read it here:

Rangers gave a dominant display in the first Old Firm game of the season to extend their unbeaten run in the fixture to seven games. In what was by some distance their best performance of this season so far Rangers go into the international break on a high following a victory against their rivals and a fourth consecutive qualification for the Europa League.

Following further disruption due to Co-Vid Rangers were forced to play Leon Balogun at right back leaving them with no recognised defenders on the bench and missing a number of 1st team players, including in-form Scott Wright, club captain James Tavernier and both 1st and 2nd choice goalkeepers Allan McGregor and Jon McLaughlin.

The game kicked off in a tumultus atmosphere which seemed even more boisterous than normal. Perhaps it was due to the fact that this was the first Old Firm fixture to be played in front of supporters for 18 months, or maybe it was more to do with the fact that the Ibrox crowd wished to remind their rivals loudly and explicitly that they were Champions again.

The first twenty minutes of the game was played at the usual frenetic pace of this fixture without either team creating any clear cut chances. However with just over a quarter of the match gone it was the opposition who had an opportunity to open the scoring. Eduoard reacted well to a cross from the right and from only 6 yards out he managed to pass the ball past the right hand post. It was a let off for Rangers and a reminder that the opposition still carried a threat.

As the game ebbed and flowed Rangers began to find their stride and with 32 minutes gone Roofe broke down the right and found Kent on the edge of the box. He curled a right foot shot from the edge of the box which hit Hart’s far post. The volume in Ibrox was turned up once more as the home crowd sensed that the Champions were beginning to find their place in the game but there was to be no breakthrough before half time.

Following the break Rangers began to further impose themselves on the game, pressing Celtic higher up the pitch and forcing the visitors to go long from Ralston and new signing Juranovic. These balls were dealt with comfortably by the Rangers back four with and the midfield three of Kamara, Davis and Aribo picked up any loose balls and recycled possession quickly allowing Rangers to build up a period of pressure.

Despite their possession and pressure Rangers were yet to really test Celtic goalkeeper Joe Hart. This changed on 65 minutes following good work from Morelos who won a free kick 10 yards from the right hand side of the opposition box. Barasic delivered an inswinging ball to the back post where a looping header from Goldson was clawed away by Hart. A minute later and Hart could do nothing as another delightful delivery, this time from a corner, found the head of Filip Helander who towered above the Celtic defence to head the ball into the net.

Ibrox erupted with a deafening noise and bedlam broke out in the stands. The goal was a deserved reward for Rangers play in the second half and showed once again the threat that the Gers carry from set pieces. There was now pandemonium inside Ibrox with all four sides of the ground participating in the ‘bouncy’ whilst the noise level just kept rising. At one point Connor Goldson was seen having to whisper into Leon Balogun’s ear in order to be heard such was the din inside the stadium.

Despite Rangers dominance in the second half they only had one goal as reward and with six minutes remaining in form Celtic striker Kyogo Furuhashi found himself one on one with Rangers third choice goalkeeper Robbie McCrorie. McCrorie stood tall and saved expertly from the Japanese striker to ensure Rangers lead remained intact. It was a save Allan McGregor himself would have been proud of and will have given young McCroie enormous confidence as he looks to continue his development.

As the clock ticked towards the end of the match Celtic continued to push for the equaliser but there was a belief and confidence in the Rangers players that they would see the game over the line and get the result that their performance merited. When the final whistle came it was greeted with an enormous roar of celebration from the stands whilst there was a public display of emotion from captain for the day Connor Goldson as he turned to the Broomloan Road end and saluted the fans in victory.

As the 1st bars of ‘I’m feeling It’ bounced around the stadium the fans soaked in every moment as they saluted the players and the coaching staff who have endured a difficult week but who ensured with today’s victory that they end the week on an enormous high.

RangersMcCrorie, Helander, Goldson, Davis, Kent (Arfield 89), Aribo, Kamara, Morelos (Sakala 84), Roofe (Lundstram 74), Balogun, Barasic
Attendance 49,402

Gers give dominant display in Dingwall

Rangers were utterly dominant in Dingwall this afternoon as they defeated Ross County 4-2 at Victoria Park. Following their Europa League qualifier on Thursday night Steven Gerrard had demanded his team 'wake up' and it was clear from the 1st minute that his players had listened to him as there was a tempo and pace to Rangers play which had been lacking so far this season. Alfredo Morelos was linking well with Joe Aribo and Ianis Hagi, whilst Calvin Bassey, retaining his place at left back, offered an useful attacking outlet. 

After a positive opening from the light blues there was no surprise that they made the breakthrough with less than 15 minutes of the match gone.  Great hold up play from Morelos, saw Joe Aribo pick the ball up just inside the left hand side of the box. He cut inside onto his left foot and then unleashed a wonderful dipping, curling strike which flew into the top corner of the net, leaving Laidlaw the County goalkeeper with no

chance.

Five minutes later and Rangers were 2-0 up. The build up play was patient and probing as Davis and Aribo worked the ball wide to Tavernier whose ball into the box was turned behind for a corner. Tavernier himself took the corner playing a deep ball into the box where Connor Goldson rose magnificently with a towering header into the corner of net. Rangers were rampant and were very nearly 3-0 up 3 minutes later when Davis picked out Hagi whose right foot shot was pushed onto the post by Laidlaw.

With just over half an hour played Rangers were two goals in front, had forced 10 corners and were in complete control of the game. Yet following a late challenge from Aribo which saw him earn a deserved booking, Rangers lost an edge to their play and on 39 minutes Ross County were given a lifeline. A free kick from an innocuous position was not dealt with and when the ball was played back into the box McGregor made an outstanding save only then to see the rebound drop to Arsenal loanee Harry Clarke who finished well. 

The halftime scoreline did not reflect Rangers first half dominance and early into the second half Rangers scored again allowing the scoreline to more accurately reflect their dominance. Bassey played in Kent on the left and his cross broke kindly to Kamara. The Finn showed enormous calmness as he stroked the ball to Morelos who sent a low left footed shot into the corner. It was a deceivingly good finish from Morelos but questions will be asked of Laidlaw the County goalkeeper.

With Rangers in the ascending chances continued to be created and squandered with the best falling to Tavernier who was put through by Aribo before clipping the ball over both the goalkeeper and the bar. Inexplicably with fifteen minutes left County were once again thrown a life raft when Calvin Bassey was adjudged to have handled the ball in the box. The ball was dispatched by White and somehow County had scored two goals in the game.

If there was any doubt creeping into the Bears minds that they wouldn't leave the Highlands with the 3 points these were firmly dispelled on 83 minutes when Scott Arfield finished an excellent move, started by an impressive press and tackle from John Lundstram. A cut back from Tavernier fell to Arfield who placed the ball into the corner and as he saluted the fans they knew the 3 points were safe.

It was a much improved performance from Rangers today which showed signs of last season's juggernaut starting to come back to life. Their was intensity in the teams passing, a willingness to be brave and decision making, on the whole was much better. Aribo was outstanding, not only with his goal but his overall play which was a complete midfield performance of incisive passing, committed tacking and linking of the play between defence and attack. 

He was helped in the middle of the park in no small way by Glen Kamara whio highlighted today, once again the important role he plays in our team. He controls much of our tempo and drive and nearly everything that is good in the team goes through Kamara. Bassey did well again at left back, although will be disappointed to have given the penalty away. Goldson and Tavernier looked to have played themselves back into form although the jury remains out on Ryan Kent. It was a much better performance from him today, but given the low bar so far this season, it's fair to say we are still to see the best of him. Had Scott Wright been fit today it would have been interesting to see if Kent had started.  

Defensively there has to be concerns that Ross County were twice allowed to get footholds back in the game due to a lack of concentration in defensive situations. Whilst it's unrealistic to expect to reach the levels of last season in terms of goals conceded it's clear that better teams than Ross County will definitely feel more confident about scoring against us than they did previously.

With two games remaining in August we must now aim to finish the month on a high with two victories. Doing so will set down a marker for the rest of the season and remind everyone why we are Champions.

McGregor, Tavernier, Goldson, Balogun, Bassey, Davis, Kamara, (Lundstram 74)  Aribo, (Roofe 83) Hagi (Arfield 78), Morelos, Kent 

WDTCR

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Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before

For those of us who endured our game against Livingston on Sunday there will have most definitely been a feeling of Deja vu. What unfolded in front of us on was nothing new as we watched Rangers struggle to break down a team intent on stopping us playing and with no desire to try and win the game for themselves. It is something we have encountered on numerous occasions in the last couple of seasons and perhaps most worryingly, we appear to be no closer to finding a solution to the problem.

The result on Sunday itself is not disastrous, particularly at this stage of the season, but the manner of how the points were dropped does allow the Rangers support to ask legitimate questions of our manager and his coaching staff. On Sunday Livingston set up with effectively a 6-3-1 formation and invited Rangers to find, or create, a gap in their defensive wall.  

This is not a new problem facing Steven Gerrard and the coaching team but not for the first time under their stewardship Rangers failed to find a way to break down the block. There was a lack of tempo and urgency from the team to get the important first goal, too many players took the safe option, and there was a general lack of creativity. On the very few occasions that did we manage to create an opportunity we were not clinical in front of goal. Alarmingly these same problems have littered previous games where teams ‘sit in’ and try and stop us playing and it is the failure to address these problems that supporters have vented their frustrations at.  

Supporters are, understandably, questioning both the tactics and the players deployed in these games.  Rangers employed their usual 4-3-3 formation against Livingston despite the fact it has proved unsuccessful in previous fixtures where teams sit in and stifle the Rangers side. Sunday also saw two holding players deployed in central midfield despite the opposition providing little attacking intent or threat. The predictability of Rangers style and the lack of surprise in both formation and personnel has been discussed on this blog before. Why, if we know that a team is going to sit do we not play two strikers? Why do we feel the need to play two holding midfielders?  

The blame for Sunday's performance cannot lay squarely at the foot of the manager though. He was once again let down by some of his players. The midfield three of Hagi, Jack and Kamara were poor throughout the game with only Kamara producing a credible performance. Hagi did not show anything like the kind of performance that we know he is capable of and it's fair to say his start to the season has been rather subdued. Ryan Jack looks a shadow of the player he was at the start of 2020 and there must be a marked improvement in his performances in the coming weeks to justify his position in the team. Alfredo Morelos once again looked out of sorts which was disappointing after a much-improved performance against St Mirren in midweek. The transfer saga surrounding him is in danger of clouding his relationship with the supporters and it would appear a resolution needs to be found to the situation before we see Morelos return to the kind of form we know he is capable of. 

Despite the dropped points on Sunday it is still a solid start to the season for Rangers. We have yet to concede a goal in the league and for the 1st time in several years it would appear Alan McGregor has real competition for the No1. jersey. Jon McLaughlin looks like an excellent signing and giving McGregor some genuine competition has been long overdue. Borna Barasic continues to excel and only an outstanding save stopped him from scoring another wonderful free kick on Sunday, Ryan Kent has also started the season strongly and despite his miss near the end of the game against Livingston was once again one of our better players.  

The players and management team have a rare free midweek and we can only hope they use it wisely as they prepare for the visit of Kilmarnock on Saturday. Whilst Sunday was undoubtedly a poor performance and ultimately a disappointing result, three points at home to Kilmarnock will set us back on track. We must remember that the league season is a marathon not a sprint and there will be many more twists and turns before the end of the season. If we were to look back at any title winning season, there will always be occasions when points are dropped. Currently we sit top of the league and can cement this position with a victory on Saturday at Ibrox. 

WDTCR 

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