“Lost, 4/10” who was bottom (and top) of the pile in Rangers’ player ratings v Villarreal?

There is so much to cover from last night’s heroics in Spain, but we’ll try to begin with the simplicity of player ratings.

How many of Ibrox Noise’s scores do you agree with?

Allan McGregor:

Beaten all ends up for both goals, but made two or three big blocks and saves and was a huge part of Rangers’ securing a point. 8

James Tavernier:

A first half on a leash showed just how much Rangers miss him when he doesn’t bomb forward. There was nothing attacking on the right at all without Tavernier, and in truth his defending was pretty solid. He had no part to play for either conceded goal, and was a huge threat in the second half when he advanced. 8

Connor Goldson:

Didn’t seem to start too well but grew into his European debut (at this level) with aplomb. Was responsible for a lot of good clearances and generally led the line well. Did let his men go a bit deep later on though and need sometimes to lead with more authority. A good night overall. 8

Joe Worrall:

Really struggled – from his ungamely attempt at clearing before Bacca finished, Worrall was shaky otherwise and didn’t assert himself in any way. We can’t understand why he started over the infinitely superior Katic and he was a real weak link. 5

Borna Barisic:

Might have done better with Villarreal’s second but it was the only blot on a night where he grew more and more into the match as it wore on. Maybe not enough of his stunning delivery, but he worked hard and generally defended well. A touch of understated class. 7

Andy Halliday:

It wasn’t till VERY late that Halliday finally got a grip of his game (having been switched to LB) and stopped making bad passes and judgements of position. He struggled noticeably last night, and not till the final 20 in defence did he finally get a hold of himself. 5

Lassana Coulibaly:

Since he grew into the first team Lassana has been a brilliant rock, a reliable midfield anchor and full of running. Sadly last night he was lost, a headless chicken who was rightly taken off. He’s mortal, and this match totally passed him by. 4

Scott Arfield:

A slowish start but his goal was huge and showed the quality he has, as well as his growth into this game (it was, into his 30s, his European debut) – and the more the match wore on the more vital his experience of other high level football came into play. Unconventional position as a 10 behind Lafferty, but overall put in a very good shift. 7

Ryan Kent:

Yet another slow starter, he improved gradually and one of two of his moves were excellent, but he did look a little more like the ‘out of sorts’ player we’ve criticised him for being in the past. Completely upstaged by the man who replaced him. 6

Daniel Candeias:

After we bigged up his professionalism and qualities recently, Danny let us down arguably with his worst display as a Rangers player. Not quite diabolical, it was flat, weak, had little defending and if it hadn’t been for his assist he’d have been a complete waste of a shirt. But the currency is productivity when it counts and he got in a vital setup for Arfield. 6

Kyle Lafferty:

The big man isn’t a target man – he isn’t capable of the physical game Steven Gerrard wanted him to fill Alfredo Morelos’ absence with. He really isn’t your one man up front kind of player and it’s safe to say Morelos is the best in the SPL at this, for his faults. But the Bold Kyle broke his European duck (with a gorgeous goal) and still did work incredibly hard trying to make things happen up top. So respect for that 7.

Subs:

Glenn Middleton:

What a cameo. Glenn’s introduction changed this game totally and he tore the backside away from the yellow defence. He got just over 15 minutes and used them as well as it’s basically possible to use a late substitute appearance. 10

Graham Dorrans:

After sources claimed this guy wasn’t even going to play till next year, he’s defied it all and got a cameo last night. And frankly, what little he did gives Steven Gerrard a huge selection headache, the kind he wants. His setup for Arfield’s late near winner was absolutely world class, and playing like that on a regular basis Graham Dorrans can raise Rangers’ level. Marvellous. 9

Ross McCrorie:

Clean and tidy and settled in nicely to the DM slot, giving Stevie another headache! Did better in his cameo than Halliday had all night. 8

Steven Gerrard:

No one can understand why he put Worrall in over Katic, claiming pre-match that Katic needed a rest and the international break had exhausted him. Thing is, he wasn’t on the international break? Nevertheless, this selection oddity aside, Gerrard’s team management was very good – he picked the team we expected, Worrall aside, even if we weren’t convinced it was the best we have. But his changes changed it, and his HT team talk was much much better than the one at Parkhead. This was a match of management, maybe Gerrard’s first real test under pressure in a match – and he got his big calls on the night correct and gave Rangers fans wonderful memories of a match we expected nothing from. Well done sir. 9.