Aberdeen 1-2 Rangers: Three Things We Learned

Rangers knew that they had a tough test on their hands when locking horns with fellow Scottish Premier League side Aberdeen this past weekend, but in the end, they passed that test with flying colours courtesy of a drama-filled 2-1 win at Pittodrie. Today, we’re going to run through a few things we picked up from the game.

Rangers’ good fortune

Rangers came into the weekend with a whole lot of confidence and we’d say that showed in how they performed – but not in a good way. There was an element of complacency in their style of play and the only reason why they were given an opening is because of a somewhat fortunate penalty and red card. Even then, Tavernier missed the penalty, and it took their star man Morelos putting in another exquisite shift for them to get going.

Aberdeen’s grit

Even when being faced with great adversity in this encounter, Aberdeen didn’t go quietly into the night. In addition to having to play with 10 men for most of the 90 minutes, they also pulled a goal back and went forward with a real intent to try and get at Rangers. Sure, Steven Gerrard’s men are very likely to run away with the league title now, but that doesn’t mean teams are just going to lie down and take it. They want to push them all the way and there’s a certain respect that needs to be afforded to clubs like Aberdeen for that, even if it isn’t likely to alter the status quo for the next few years.

The unstoppable force?

At this moment in time, Rangers are the overwhelming 1/40 favourites with 888sport to win the Scottish Premier League and prevent Celtic from making it 10 league titles in a row. They are 22 points clear which means that even if their rivals won all four of their games in hand, they would still be 10 points behind the pace. It’s going to be intriguing to see how both Old Firm clubs manage the remainder of the season but at this stage, the only way is up for an impressive Rangers side that continues to thrive both domestically and in Europe.

Match Report

Aberdeen: Lewis (6.5), Considine (7), Taylor (6.5), Hoban (6.5), Hayes (8), Ferguson (6.5), Campbell (7), Hedges (4), Wright (6), Cosgrove (6.5), Main (6), Edmondson (6), Kennedy (7), Logan (6.5)

Rangers: McGregor (6), Tavernier (6), Goldson (6.5), Balogun (6.5), Barisic (6.5), Aribo (7.5), Davis (7), Kamara (7), Hagi (6.5), Morelos (8.5), Kent (8), Zungu (6)

Referee: John Beaton

Goals: Kennedy :: Morelos x2

Yellow Cards: Ferguson, Main, Tavernier

Red Cards: Hedges