I’m not in the least bit sorry for the ratings below. I know there’s a fair amount of emotion tainting them. That’s pretty much how match ratings work, though. When you’re not using formulas like Football Manager would to produce them, they reflect the joy or frustration the players made you feel. So, here is just how abject I felt Rangers were on Sunday.
WES FODERINGHAM – 3
There’s an argument for saying Foderingham was let down by his teammates. Two penalties against him certainly isn’t ideal. However, there’s a feeling that he could have done a little more with the two first half goals. His distribution was poor, and didn’t help the team keep possession. He also has to be considered a part of the panic the team were showing in a defensive sense overall.
JAMES TAVERNIER – 3
Tavernier put in plenty of effort, but there was little by way of quality. He would often run into trouble on the ball, and struggled to link up with Candeias on the right. As captain, you would hope he would find ways to raise the energy levels from others at least. The overall performance told us he was unable to do that.
ROSS McCRORIE – 2
I still believe McCrorie will be a centre half for most of his career. This match, though, was a real lesson for him. Dembele consistently got in behind him, and despite McCrorie winning some of the battles, he was clearly struggling. His red card came from some poor decision making, and he’ll learn from a game like this. The fans will now see just how strong his mental strength is.
RUSSELL MARTIN – 2
This was a horrible performance from Martin. He’s a player most fans aren’t convinced by at all, as he’s had a slow start. His first half was largely clearing the ball into the stands before he gave away the second goal with a terrible attempt at doing just that. The only positive moment of note was a block on a Dembele shot in the first half. Everything else, from his positioning to his passing, was utterly lamentable.
DECLAN JOHN – 2
John made very little impact upon this match. He allowed the cross for the first goal to come in far too easily. He didn’t look comfortable on the ball, or willing to overlap and support. At one point in the second half, he ran into trouble and pretty much gave up instead of working to win the ball back. Given how poor others were, he won’t be a focus of much attention.
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GREG DOCHERTY – 4
Docherty was the only player who looked like he really wanted to be there. He didn’t win all of his battles, or really produce much on the ball. What he did do was work hard, track back, and try to raise the energy of those around him. At one point in the second half, he ran from his own box all the way to the Celtic byline, fighting through tackles, and got an ovation from the fans. That just about summed up how bad things were, mind you.
GRAHAM DORRANS – 2
The match largely passed Dorrans by. He’s clearly still trying to find his match fitness, and it showed. His passing was loose, and he wasn’t getting close to players to win challenges. He didn’t seem to know whether to sit deep or get forward, and really done neither. Aside from one clash with Brown in the second half, you’d have been forgiven for forgetting he was playing.
ANDY HALLIDAY – 1
Some fans seem to have sympathy for Halliday after he was substituted on 40 minutes. His reaction towards Murty was filled with frustration and anger. For me, he deserved to be taken off. He was the player who was brought in to provide something different to previous matches. Instead, he offered absolutely nothing. Gave the ball away almost every time he had it, and the closest he got to a Celtic player was a daft foul. I don’t like writing this, but I fully believe he has no right to be annoyed with anyone but himself.
DANIEL CANDEIAS – 2
Nothing was really working for Candeias. He put in plenty of effort, but even that seemed to be misplaced at times. Aside from a couple of decent runs in the first half, he didn’t make any sort of impact in an attacking sense.
JAMIE MURPHY – 2
Murphy was, for me, the best player on the park when Rangers faced Celtic at Ibrox. I was looking forward to seeing him have a real go at their defence again. For whatever reason, he was very poor. He didn’t take on players at all in areas that can hurt teams. Defensively, he was asked to tuck in until we went 1-0 down, but never seemed to get close to anyone to press them into mistakes.
ALFREDO MORELOS – 2
Morelos missed another absolute sitter in this match. It’s what he’ll be mainly criticised for. He worked hard to try and hold the ball up, and was the only player who looked like he could handle the physical side of the game. However, as it wore on, he became more and more frustrated, and looked like he wanted to fight with players more than actually play football. He’s a young man who has had a good season overall. Unfortunately, matches like this and sitters like that will overshadow the rest.
JOSH WINDASS – 2
Came on for Halliday at 2-0 down, and wasn’t really able to offer much. Certainly tried to stretch the Celtic defence, and get on the ball, but the game was pretty much lost by then.
BRUNO ALVES – 2
Alves came on at 3-0 down to try and prevent an embarrassing scoreline. He was unlucky with a header from a corner. Defensively, the whole team was all over the place, and he struggled just as much as anyone.
JASON HOLT – 1
Holt offered very little when he came on, and gave away the second penalty. It was something of a horrible task to be brought on at the time he was.
Any ratings you disagree with? Tweet us @rangersnewsuk with your thoughts!