Rangers have blown the chance to extend their lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership after slipping up against Motherwell at Ibrox.
The Gers spurned a host of good opportunities to score in the match and succumbed to a surprise 2-1 defeat against the Steelmen in Glasgow.
Motherwell put in a spirited display and were good value for at least a point from the fixture, striker Theo Bair proving a handful throughout and opening the scoring in the first half.
Rangers captain James Tavernier had equalised from the penalty spot around the hour mark before Dan Casey took advantage of a disjointed Rangers defence to bundle home the eventual winner.
The result maintains Rangers’ slender two point lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership table but gifts Old Firm rivals Celtic the opportunity to regain top spot if they can defeat Hearts at Tynecastle.
Here are three things we learned.
Will Rangers capitulate after Motherwell slip?
No sooner had Rangers begun to mount a period of sustained pressure on Old Firm rivals Celtic has the side stumbled against Motherwell.
Whilst the Parkhead side’s trip to Edinburgh and Scotland’s third force will be no gimme, the Ibrox side have just handed their rivals an almighty incentive.
Rangers were expected to take care of Motherwell this afternoon and looked leggy, lacklustre, and lacking in ideas as Philippe Clement’s mid-season premonition came to fruition.
The Rangers manager has repeatedly claimed that a slip-up would come and that it’s about how his side react to it.
After ten wins on the bounce since defeat to Celtic at Parkhead in December, can this Rangers team regain their footing in the title race?
Injuries starting to mount
Heading into the match, Rangers were rocked by yet another injury with Colombian attacker and January signing Oscar Cortes now facing a lengthy lay-off.
The 20-year-old has been a real bright spark for Rangers in recent weeks but by the sounds of things will be lucky to play again this season in what’s a monumental blow.
Abdallah Sima is still some ways away from returning for Rangers – with his goals a big miss – whilst Kieran Dowell, Todd Cantwell, Alex Lowry, Rabbi Matondo, and Danilo are all still missing.
Kemar Roofe will also take some time to get up to a reliable level of fitness and for Philippe Clement – who swears by squad rotation – suddenly options in the final third are increasingly limited.
Wasteful Rangers pay Scottish Premiership penalty
That leads us on nicely to the final thing – our abysmal finishing.
If Rangers cannot find the ruthless streak of Champions in the final two months of the season then they can kiss any notion they will lift the Scottish Premiership goodbye.
An over-reliance on right-back James Tavernier – who is proving both a blessing and a curse – is taking the spotlight off a profligate frontline who need to start converting.
In other areas of the park – namely from corners and free-kicks – the likes of Connor Goldson also need to take more responsibility for forcing the ball into the back of the net.
According to FotMob, Rangers had an xG of 3.38 in the game which means the club created enough chances to win the game outright, even if Motherwell outscored their xG of 0.84.
As the Rangers defeat to Motherwell proves, if you don’t convert your chances you will pay the penalty but as the Gers lose this battle, if they don’t properly assess the situation it’ll cost us the title.
