Two 9’s and a 10 – player ratings as Rangers draw in Holland

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Two 9’s and a 10 – player ratings as Rangers draw in Holland


No, we hadn’t forgotten the ratings.

With so much to chew through after last night’s epic tussle in Holland, we had higher priorities than the player ratings, but now we can finally deliver some scores.

We’re sure you’ll all disagree!

McGregor:

Had no chance with either goal, and yet pulled off some huge saves in this one especially during a first half which Rangers will be grateful for just the one lost goal. He really stood up, and his point blank header save in the second was classic game-saving McGregor. Excellent. 9

Tavernier:

Very mixed night for the captain. Struggled to really get into it in the first half as an attacking force, and what crosses he provided were mostly poor, but got more of the ball in the second half and actually provided some excellent defensive interceptions. Was caught at the wrong end of the pitch for the equaliser though. 6

Goldson:

Mixed night here too. Some of his usual aerial clearances relieved pressure on the defence, but at sixes and sevens for the equaliser and showed he still isn’t able to command the box. 6

Helander:

Yet another mixed night. Showed both weakness and strength as he got utterly done for a header which mercifully didn’t lead to anything but managed to show power to fend off a few pressing attacks. Was hapless like Goldson for the equaliser and extremely culpable. 6

Barisic:

Strangely blamed by commentator Alex Rae for a weak clearing header when in fact the header cleared the box – just very unfortunate it landed at the wrong shirt. Otherwise a solid match, with a decent crossing rate albeit a few did go wayward. Kept Berghuis pretty quiet. Again he was Rangers’ best defender and provided the pinpoint assist for Morelos’ second. 8

Davis:

Superb from the NI international. Recovered from his penalty miss to put in an assured display, and was pulling all the strings from midfield. His delivery for Kent’s assist was marvellous and he showed all his experience. 9

Kamara:

A scrappy start (we say that a lot about this boy) but his gritty work helped to stem most of Feyenoord’s attacks. Distribution was very good with few misplaced passes and his mobility ensured opponents had to work for space. 7

Jack:

Perhaps a little subdued by Jack’s standards, he did make some big interceptions and plenty of tackles but it wasn’t quite his usual attacking marauding self. This was mainly because Feyenoord’s midfield simply had more of the ball and he was often chasing shadows, but showed brilliant speed of thought to game manage at the end of the match. 7

Ojo:

Actually had some bright moments but overall wasn’t able to get as involved as he’d want to – ruined a good passing move with sheer loss of concentration. 18 passes all night only reaffirmed our point from weeks ago that he just doesn’t distribute the ball enough. 6

Kent:

After a very poor start (what was that backheel all about mate) Kent crept into the game more and more and by the end was hugely involved, his assist for Morelos’ opener (and control from Davis’ pass) being absolutely sublime. Caused constant danger when he got the ball. Energetic, Kent is definitely regaining that match fitness. 8

Morelos:

Was causing very little mischief up front till he set the match alive with his first then his second. In this one Morelos, starved of service, worked hard as he could, starved anything to actually feed off, till he FINALLY got a (half, he still had tonnes to do) chance and buried it. Then did it exactly the same again 13 minutes later. This was a world class performance from the best player in the Europa League. 10

Subs:

Arfield:

More composure than Ojo and provided a calming assurance. 6

Manager:

There was nothing wrong with Stevie’s selection – sure, we’d personally prefer Katic over Goldson but otherwise, Jones aside, this was close to his best team – but it was just second best in that first half where it couldn’t get the ball nor forge any worthwhile possession or attacks. That stayed exactly the same in the second until a three-player moment of genius changed everything, and we’re not sure how much of this we can attribute to the manager on this occasion. There was no obvious shift in tactic in the second half, no clear change – yet this moment changed it all. He picked more or less the right team, but they just didn’t play in that first half. One goal changed the whole match, and either way, Stevie will be delighted to get yet more points away from home in this tournament. 7

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6 COMMENTS

  1. This was a fantastic result with 2 absolutely brilliant headed goals that you won't see bettered anywhere in Europe this week. But this wasn't a great performance. First half it wasn't even a good performance. We were lucky to go in at half time just one goal down. We looked like losing a goal from EVERY set piece and we could hardly put 3 passes together. Every time we got hold of the ball in midfield our first thought was to look back the way. Second half we were a bit better outside of our 2 goals and we did close out the game quite well.
    Gerrard must take some credit for changing the players mentality in the second half but this seems to be a recurring problem. Surely we now know what is required when we take the field. They shouldn't need the manager to remind them every other game. We also need someone to attack set pieces coming into our box, or is Katic that man?

  2. Agree with most of your scores. Think I would score Tavernier higher, if he is caught up the park it is because he has been told to get up there. I would give him one of Ojo's points, another 2 of which can go to Morelos who you only scored as a 10 for some reason!! 🙂

  3. Have to agree with 99% of that. Except for Ojo. Would give him 4. To me, Ojo reminds me of the Josh Windass. All flash and little, end result. Like a kettle that only 'nearly' boils. He has flashes, but we need, end result. Keep him out for YB's, I say.

    • Joe, I get what you mean, Windass had a habit of disappearing in tough matches, but if Ojo delivered anything like the number of goals Windass did, I would happily forgive that.
      I think some people forget6 how many goals Josh gave us. Think where we could have been last season with him in behind Morelos, adding another 20 goals to our total. Even if it was against the "wee teams" those are the dropped points that killed us last season. He got 13 goals in 33 games in the league. Which of our support strikers/wingers/AMs got anywhere near that? Not Kent, for all his quality

  4. I think you have given your scores based on the second half performance. Most of the players would have got much lower scores based on their first half performances, I would exclude McGregor, Goldson, Helander and Jack, however none of the others first half performances deserved the scores given.
    But on their second half performances, I would agree with you. Great result!

  5. Really impressed with Ryan Jack's maturity in the last 5 minutes – the 'game management' you commented on above. Ryan is becoming the all-rounder in midfield that will make him captain and a Rangers legend like Barry Ferguson (or a Steven Gerrard at Liverpool). Just needs to start shouting and moaning a bit more.

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