Same ground, same opponents, same outcome, only this time it was a very different encounter. What Rangers did to Dundee in the Scottish Cup quarter-finals seven days before they repeated in the Premiership on Sunday, but what a struggle it was for them at Dens Park.
Having toiled through 90 difficult minutes on a poor pitch against dogged, well-organised opponents, Giovanni van Bronckhorst and his players breathed a mighty sigh of relief when Connor Goldson popped up with a late, late winner, turned in from close range after Kemar Roofe’s shot had been blocked.
Where the previous weekend they had cantered to an easy 3-0 victory, this time Rangers made awfully hard work of it, falling behind to an early goal by Christie Elliott, missing a penalty just before half-time and needing more than an hour to equalise through Aaron Ramsey. At the end of it all, they are still three points behind Celtic, the Premiership leaders.
It was a brutally sore one for Dundee, whose manager, Mark McGhee, finally took his place on the touchline, having served a six-game ban. He watched his team rattle Rangers in the early stages, remain competitive throughout and come agonisingly close to a priceless point in their battle against relegation. As it is, they remain bottom of the Premiership, four points behind St Johnstone.
It was a disjointed game, broken up by disruptions. Before and during it, Rangers fans protested against the club’s decision to play against Celtic in Australia this November. Between chants that informed the board where they could stick their friendly, they threw missiles on to the pitch, much to the frustration of their players.
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Just before kick-off, Ian Lawlor’s penalty area was pelted with toilet rolls. When the streams of white paper were cleared and the game started, they did it again, which forced Bobby Madden, the referee, to hold up the game for four minutes. Again, they were cleared, again the game started, only for the travelling support to bombard the box once more, this time with tennis balls. Van Bronckhorst shook his head, Goldson and Alfredo Morelos held out their arms as if to ask “Why?” and members of the Rangers board squirmed in their seats.
Their discomfort seemed to be shared by Rangers’ players on a dry, rutted pitch that made passing difficult, even dangerous at the back. Add to that the zeal with which Dundee harassed them, and there was a nervousness about the visiting side who wore an all-white strip to commemorate their 150th anniversary.
Three days after their Europa League heroics in Belgrade, Van Bronckhorst sought to freshen it up. Filip Helander, who had not been in the European squad, came in for Leon Balogun. Scott Arfield replaced Joe Aribo, who had been off the pace in midweek. James Sands was picked ahead of Ryan Jack, whose return from injury has to be consolidated, and Ramsey was given his first Premiership start at the expense of Glen Kamara.
It has been a long, frustrating wait for Ramsey, and he did not make the best of starts to the game. When Zak Rudden laid the ball inside to Jordan Marshall, the Wales international failed to prevent a cross from the byline. When the ball looped over Allan McGregor, the wing back Elliott headed it in from just under the crossbar.
Dundee strung five across the back and four across the midfield, which did the trick during a first half in which Rangers’ response never quite materialised. Morelos glanced a header wide, after a cross by Calvin Bassey. Then Goldson spun in the box and pulled a shot narrowly wide. At the other end, they had the jitters as the ball bobbled about and Dundee waited to pounce.
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Still, they should have been level when the referee controversially awarded them a penalty just before half-time. There seemed to be very little contact between Jordan McGhee and Morelos, but the latter thought there had been a tug on his shirt and Madden pointed to the spot. Tavernier, whose penalties often have a high-risk quality about them, curled it over the bar.
Van Bronckhorst made two changes at the interval: Fashion Sakala for Helander and Aribo for Arfield. John Lundstram moved into central defence, but the second half was delayed by another protest and Rangers still struggled to find their rhythm. Only as the hour mark approached did something click and, when it did, they suddenly peppered Dundee’s goal.
Until then, Lawlor had been given surprisingly little to do, but he was a busy lad in that period. First he blocked a header by Morelos at the front post. Then Ramsey took it upon himself to become a goal threat. His close-range header was saved on the line, as was his shot. When Aribo was denied from a tight angle, it looked as though the goalkeeper was going to come out on top.
Then, the equaliser. Tavernier swung in the deepest of crosses from wide on the left, Lawlor blocked a header back across goal and the ball broke to Ramsey in the six-yard area. The midfielder poked it over the line, and raced back up the pitch, leaping about like a teenager as he went.
The Rangers end erupted in celebration, but when Goldson produced the winner, they were louder still.
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Dundee (5-4-1): I Lawlor — C Elliott, C Kerr, J McGhee, R Sweeney, J Marshall — P McMullan, S Byrne, P McGowan (M Anderson 53min), D McDaid — (L McCowan 83) Z Rudden (N McGinn 72). Booked McGhee, Elliott, McMullan.
Rangers (4-2-3-1): A McGregor — J Tavernier, C Goldson, F Helander (F Sakala 46), C Bassey — J Sands (K Roofe 64), J Lundstram — A Ramsey (G Kamara 84), S Arfield (J Aribo 46), R Kent — A Morelos (L Balogun 86). Booked Sands.
Referee B Madden.
Attendance 7,669.
