Glasgow Rangers secured what could turn out to be a massive victory with regard to where the Premiership title ends up on Tuesday evening.
With the score level at 1-1 and mounting tension among the Ibrox faithful, Todd Cantwell stepped up and was the hero on the night, scoring from a rebounded Tom Lawrence effort with just 20 minutes to go.
In all honesty, this is a game in which the Gers would have dropped points under previous coaches Michael Beale and Giovanni van Bronckhorst, yet with Philippe Clement in charge, it feels as though something special is brewing.
The majority of players delivered a solid showing last night, with Jack Butland once again the game-changer for the Light Blues due to his presence in the penalty area.
Jack Butland: Rangers’ best signing this season
Prior to the match, the Englishman had kept 15 clean sheets in just 23 league matches and his displays had allowed the Gers to achieve the best defensive record in the top flight.
Butland made three saves during the clash last night along with succeeding with 100% of his run-outs, and although he conceded, it was arguably Connor Goldson’s fault for being caught out with a long ball over the top, which led to Bojan Miovski scoring.
Clement knows he can depend on his goalkeeper and this is what the club have been missing over the previous few seasons, a safe pair of hands between the posts which can save them 10–12 points a term.
Remarkably, there was one player on the pitch who actually had fewer touches than Butland during the match, as Cyriel Dessers failed to impress despite starting over Fabio Silva.
Cyriel Dessers’ game in numbers vs Aberdeen
Silva started against Livingston last weekend and scored his first goal for Rangers along with putting in a solid display. With fixtures coming thick and fast, it made sense for Clement to bring in Dessers from the start against the Dons, but he put in yet another dismal performance.
During his 57 minutes on the pitch, the 29-year-old took just 28 touches – two fewer than Butland – while completing only 16 passes and having two shots on target as he was largely ineffective in front of goal.
Dessers also failed to win any of his attempted duels – ground or aerial – indicating that he was bullied off the ball far too often and with the scores level, the Belgian manager had to make a change and bring him off.
Silva posed a much greater attacking threat, succeeding with two of his three dribbles while winning seven of his 11 total duels, and he should have made it 3-1 in the dying minutes, with his shot just drifting wide of the goal.
The on-loan starlet offers so much more than Dessers, who is far too one-dimensional, and this must be something Clement has to consider ahead of future matches.
All that mattered against the Pittodrie side was three points and considering that the Gers were seven points behind after just seven matches, it is a testament to how impressive they have been under the 49-year-old coach, who has inspired what once looked like an unlikely title challenge.
