There are ways to drop points and ways to drop points, when Rangers dropped two against Aberdeen much of the frustration came from the missed opportunity from a team that has missed so many in the past.
Philippe Clement has clearly improved the squad since arriving as the new Gers boss, a change in mentality that has seen fewer moments like the one that saw his team go a goal behind at Pittodrie.
There has been another positive though and it is one that Rangers repeated against Aberdeen at the weekend as Clement looks to claw back the gap he inherited at the top of the table.
Rangers suffer Aberdeen frustration but future positivity remains
One thing that the big Belgian has brought, is an upturn in expected goals performance.
For those that aren’t statistic lovers, it basically means that we are creating more chances to score goals.
Obviously, it is better to have two high quality chances than five low quality ones but it is in the former that there has been an improvement in.
Michael Beale spoke previously about the number of shots his team were taking but this means nothing when they are all from 20 yards out and missing the target.
Rangers maybe had to rely on scoring from the spot to avoid defeat against Aberdeen but with an xG of 2.87 and 10 shots on target according to Footy Stats, there was nothing structurally wrong with the performance.
In short, the manager did his job but the players simply weren’t clinical enough added to Kelle Roos making a series of outstanding stops.
Someone else must’ve been in goals at Parkhead the other week….
Over the course of the season, if Rangers repeat what they did at Aberdeen, they will win consistently and win well, but there is a caveat.
The chances that fell to the likes of Sam Lammers and Leon Balogun have to be taken with the defence not throwing one in at the other end too.
