Rangers moved level on points with Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premiership
Rangers are "not thinking" about the title race, says Phillipe Clement, despite his side moving level on points with Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic by beating Aberdeen in Neil Warnock's first game in charge.
Much of the pre-match talk revolved around the veteran manager's arrival in Scotland, but that noise was soon silenced when Rabbi Matondo fired home after goalkeeper Kelle Roos spilled the ball into his path.
As they pushed forward in search of the three-goal victory that would have moved them top of the table, Rangers were left stunned as a long ball was finished off brilliantly by Bojan Miovski.
The home crowd grew restless as chances came and went, but another rebound from a Roos save – this time tucked away by Todd Cantwell – was enough to claw back a gap to Celtic that looked overwhelming before Clement's arrival.
A late red card for Dujon Sterling – upheld by referee Don Robertson after a VAR review – gave Aberdeen late hope, but Warnock suffered a rare defeat in a first game in charge of a new club.
"Going to 10 players was another thing that went against us and you need to stick together," Clement said.
"It is a massive thing to win games like this. These are normally the ones where you lose points. If we keep winning games like that, it is good for the rest of the season. We are taking it game by game.
"I believe this team can go a really long way if they stick together and there are no egos. We are still fighting for three competitions."
All the latest Rangers news
Everything you need about Aberdeen
The electricity of an Ibrox crowd desperate for their side to move top of the table seeped onto the pitch as Rangers' intensity overwhelmed Aberdeen early on.
The opening goal seemed just a matter of time, and came when Matondo punished Roos' careless error.
James Tavernier then failed to finish off a slick move, before Matondo burst through the backline, waiting so long to pull the trigger in a moment of indecision that it felt longer than Warnock's 44-year managerial career.
Despite the domination, Aberdeen know they have a striker capable of conjuring something from nothing. And so it proved. Miovski fended off Connor Goldson and dinked his 20th goal of the season past Jack Butland.
Roos went some way to atoning for his early error as he stood tall to twice deny Cyriel Dessers, with the second stop an excellent reaction save with his right boot.
But the Dutchman would again be left to rue a parried save as Tom Lawrence's arrowed strike was only diverted towards Cantwell, who soaked up the adulation of the home crowd for the second time in four days.
In his 1627th game in the dugout, Warnock's first career encounter with VAR proved eventful as referee Robertson chose to stick with his decision to send off Sterling after the substitute slid in on Jack MacKenzie.
The visitors could have nicked it after a late melee in the box required a sprawling save from Butland, while Fabio Silva was inches away from sealing the game with a dragged shot across goal.
Some of the home crowd will have filtered out of Ibrox with a tinge of disappointment at not hitting the front in the title race, but given how far they were behind when Clement took over, pulling level was enough to spark celebrations.
Todd Cantwell was brought to Ibrox to win his side games. After a stuttering start, the Englishman is beginning to show his quality as he proved the difference in chaotic encounter
Despite the fine margin of the victory, this was a showing of Rangers' title credentials.
Their blistering start blew Aberdeen away. At times, Clement's side have laboured to victories in front of their home crowd, requiring patience and persistence.
That caution was flung out the window as they charged out onto the turf with the kind of intensity that showed they were out to make a statement.
The boundless energy of John Lundstram piled the pressure on, while the forward players showed more incision on a night when anything other than three points would have punctured the momentum that has built under Clement.
Having lost just once since the Belgian's arrival, they are now neck and neck with a Celtic side that once threatened to pull away into the distance.
But it wasn't smooth sailing. Aberdeen recovered from the early storm and began to show the resilience and fight Warnock will demand of his new charges.
The new boss has worked with some fine frontmen in his long career, but in Miovski he has a wonderful striker. The way he held off Goldson was almost as beautiful as the deft finish to equalise.
A gutsy display in imposing conditions, Warnock has a foundation to build on as he looks to restore the club's European ambitions.
Rangers manager Philippe Clement: "They had one good opportunity just before half time that was a goal. A moment like that a few months ago would have created some tension in the heads of the team, some doubts in the fans also.
"That is not the case anymore. They know on the pitch that we are close to the three points if we keep doing what we have been doing."
Interim Aberdeen manager Neil Warnock: "I thought the application was excellent. To go a goal down early on, a lot of teams might have crumbled but I thought we hung in there.
"I thought we grew into the game, to get the goal like we did was a real plus. I felt we were rushing a bit, playing the occasion and not calming down, but I thought we did that as the game moved on."
Rangers host former Celtic captain Scott Brown's Ayr United in the Scottish Cup on Saturday (17:30 GMT), while Aberdeen welcome League 2 Bonnyrigg Rose earlier in the day (15:00).
BBC Sport Scottish Football
SPFL
Scotland set to name initial Euro 2024 squad and Pochettino leaves Chelsea
Pochettino leaves Chelsea after one season
Celtics beat Pacers in overtime to take series lead
Sit back and take a sonic journey with Michael Mosley
Discover simple techniques to activate your body's built-in relaxation response
Conor and Jock are older, but are they any wiser?
Watch new episodes of The Young Offenders on BBC iPlayer
Delve into the personal lives of the Lionesses
Vick Hope finds out what Ella Toone and Alessia Russo are like at home
To get to the story, there's always a cost
In the underbelly of Tokyo, a US journalist breaks open the violent world of the yakuza
Subscribe & follow updates on your Premiership team
Ex-Netflix chief Barmack on his Motherwell vision
Scotland face Croatia, Portugal & Poland in Nations League
From titles to tinpottery – rank Scotland's top 10 clubs
Ruthless Southgate picks squad grounded on brutal reality
Key questions in Clarke's Scotland squad selection
England return with 'pride dented' – Buttler
Phil McNulty's end-of-season Premier League report
Does Newey guarantee success and should Red Bull replace Perez? – F1 Q&A
'The Valhalla nail-biter that had everything'
End-of-season Premier League awards – vote now
The areas England must improve to take Australia's T20 crown
Ian Wright's emotional Match of the Day montage. Video
WSL title perfect end to Hayes' unique story
Usyk's epic victory over Fury in 10 pictures
How well do you remember this season's Premier League?
Black, white and shades of grey – what's behind sprint's race divide?
© 2024 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.
Chief Editor
As the Editor-In-Chief at Fridayposts, my commitment is to make valuable, insightful and useful articles and latest news contents available to our highly esteemed readers and subscribers.
Add A Comment