Ross McCausland’s goalscoring impact during Rangers 1-1 draw with Aris Limassol earned the youngster some well-deserved praise from a former Manchester United and Bayern Munich star.
After being denied a first senior goal by VAR against Livingston a couple of weeks ago, there was to be no repeat of such frustration when Aris Limassol came to town.
Rangers starlet Ross McCausland, introduced late in the first for a frustrated Todd Cantwell, wasted little time in cancelling out Aris’ shock opener mere moments after the interval, collecting a Danilo pass, shifting the ball into space and firing a well-placed strike low and hard into the far corner.
Ross McCausland rescues Rangers vs Aris
“You always want to see a young lad come on. And the thing I like about him is that he’s quite positive,” Owen Hargreaves, a two-time Champions League winner with Manchester United and Bayern Munich, told TNT Sports during their highlights show (30 November, 10.30pm).
“He just gets it out of his feet, shifts it and it’s a good finish. To be fair, he had a good impact on the game. It’s rare for a young man, in that atmosphere, in a European game, to have such an impact.
“And I thought he looked confident.”
‘Confident’ is certainly a fitting description of the 20-year-old Northern Ireland international. McCausland’s age and lack of experience appears to be more of a help than a hindrance, giving the old-school wideman the sort of up-and-at-em fearlessness which can often make the difference in tight games such as this.
Europa League frustration
“Excellent goal. I’ll tell you one thing it does, it justifies the substitution,” Rangers legend Ally McCoist explained during commentary duty for TNT Sports . “Danilo does well (to lay it off). But all he needs is a half yard.
“I tell the kids all the time; ‘You don’t need to beat the defender. All you need to do is make a half yard’. And that’s exactly what he does.”
McCausland signed a new long-term contract in midweek, warding off interest from the likes of Brentford, Atalanta and Roma.
