Rangers move level with Celtic at top after beating Ross County

Posted Thursday, February 15, 2024 by PA

Rangers moved level on points with cinch Premiership leaders Celtic with a 3-1 win over Ross County but their profligacy prevented them going top.

The Light Blues took the lead in the fifth minute through striker Cyriel Dessers and the home side then hit the woodwork twice amid an onslaught.

However, the second-bottom Staggies, with Don Cowie in charge for the first time following the departure of Derek Adams last week, unexpectedly levelled in the 25th minute with a Simon Murray strike.

Dessers grabbed his second in first-half added time to placate the Gers fans frustrated at the missed chances but there were more opportunities passed up in the second half before defender John Souttar eventually headed in a third late on.

After eventually catching up on fixtures with Celtic, the Govan side are level on points and goal difference with the Hoops but have scored four fewer than their Old Firm rivals.

Another huge crowd rolled up to Ibrox knowing a three-goal win against a club who had never beaten Rangers in 23 attempts would see the lead at the top change hands.

Philippe Clement made seven changes from Saturday’s 2-0 Scottish Gas Scottish Cup win over Ayr United.

Ridvan Yilmaz, John Lundstram, Tom Lawrence, Ross McCausland, Todd Cantwell, Rabbi Matondo and Dessers all returned while Cowie brought in Eamonn Brophy, Michee Efete, Ryan Leak, Josh Reid and Victor Loturi.

A sense of expectancy hung heavy in the air.

Dessers struck early, taking a pass from captain James Tavernier and fending off the attention of defender Leak before lobbing the ball over stranded Staggies keeper George Wickens and the Light Blues were up and running.

Wickens soon had to tip a powerful shot from Tavernier past the post for a corner, which the startled Dingwall side survived.

In the 10th minute Dessers latched on to a raking pass from left-back Yilmaz and beat Wickens only to see the ball rebound off the post.

Then Matondo raced onto a defence-splitting pass from midfielder Lundstram and curled the ball past the far post before Wickens tipped a shot from the wide man onto the bar and over.

Lawrence, Souttar, Tavernier and Dessers had further efforts of various quality before Murray stunned the home fans into silence with a confident volley from six yards from a delicious Brophy cross.

The mood inside the stadium darkened.

The Gers crowd looked on in astonishment as Leak stopped Dessers’ close-range shot after Wickens had spilled a Cantwell drive but the enigmatic striker made up for it by heading in a Tavernier cross seconds before the break which changed the atmosphere again.

January signing Oscar Cortes, the 20-year-old Colombian signed on loan from Lens, replaced Matondo at half-time and in the 52nd minute had a decent drive parried clear by the over-worked Wickens, who soon tipped a long-ranger from Cantwell past the post.

The pressure on the County goal was relentless but just after the hour-mark the Gers fans were relieved to see Efete head a County corner over the bar when he should have worked keeper Jack Butland.

Wickens made further saves from Lundstram, Lawrence and Dessers before the latter was replaced by Portuguese striker Fabio Silva.

In the 74th minute Cortes missed the target from 12 yards and, amid a myriad of attempts on the County goal, Wickens denied Cantwell and Cortes again.

But in the second of seven added minutes Souttar headed in a Tavernier cross but there was to be no later drama and the chance to strike a psychological blow was gone.