Dundee’s hopes of European football next season were finally extinguished by a 5-2 defeat against Rangers in Glasgow tonight. The Dark Blues put in an impressive first half performance and led 2-0 with goals late in the first half from Jordan McGhee and Antonio Portales. However, Ross McCausland grabbed a vital goal on the stroke of half time to bring Rangers back in the match and the home side went on to take complete control in the second half. Goals from Cyriel Dessers and Todd Cantwell put Rangers ahead before substitute Scott Wright came on to score two late goals.
There were two changes to the Dee team from Saturday. Mo Sylla and Scott Tiffoney started, with Aaron Donnelly and Michael Mellon moving to the bench.
Dundee started well, holding Rangers at bay and making some pleasing passes as they came forward. Nicolas Raskin tested Jon McCracken with a shot from 25 yards but the Dee keeper saved comfortably.
Apart from that the Dark Blues coped well with Rangers’ attacks in the first quarter of an hour. Fabio Silva then broke through two tackles to fire an angled shot off the top of the crossbar.
After 32 minutes Luke McCowan sent a badly misjudged pass across the face of the Dundee penalty area straight to Ross McCausland. McCracken spared his skipper’s blushes by touching the shot over the bar.
The Dark Blues were still playing neat football but without forcing Jack Butland to make any saves in Rangers’ goal. That changed dramatically in the last 10 minutes of the first half.
First, Butland held a firmly struck 30 yard shot from Scott Tiffoney. In Dundee’s next attack McCowan played Tiffoney into the penalty area. Butland saved and Tiffoney’s goalbound follow up was headed away by Ben Davies.
The Dark Blues kept attacking and Butland again saved well from Malachi Boateng’s curling 20 yarder.
After 38 minutes the Dee broke through. The ball was worked smoothly across the park from right to left. Owen Dodgson burst past James Tavernier and hit a lovely low cross across the face of goal for Jordan McGHEE to shoot past Butland at the far post.
Two minutes later the Dark Blues had a free kick wide on the left. McCowan played it short to Dodgson who hit another wicked cross into the danger area and Antonio PORTALES scored with an outrageous flick off the outside of his boot.
The Dee could have made it three before half time. Dodgson delivered a dangerous free kick to the near post and Mo Sylla knocked the ball narrowly wide.
At the very end of the half Dundee conceded a frustratingly avoidable goal that changed the mood in the ground and brought Rangers right back into the match. Dodgson and Portales were caught out by a through ball and allowed Ross McCAUSLAND to nip in and poke a shot through McCracken’s legs.
Dundee had to keep it tight and frustrate Rangers at the start of the second half to stop the home side building momentum. Sadly it took only seven minutes for Rangers to wipe out Dundee’s lead with a disappointingly simple goal. Todd Cantwell crossed from the left and Cyriel Dessers glanced a neat header across McCracken and inside the far post.
At no point in the second half were the Dark Blues able to trouble the Rangers defence as they had in the first half. Once Rangers were on level terms they went on to take control of the game.
Midway through the second half Rangers took the lead. CANTWELL scored from the right touchline, 25 yards from the corner flag. Cross? Shot? Whatever it was the ball flew over McCracken’s head and into the net off the far post. It was a freakish goal, but no-one could argue Rangers didn’t deserve it on the balance of play.
Rangers threatened to score again with every attack. Silva spun and shot from the edge of the penalty area but McCracken saved well. The Dee keeper then pulled off a magnificent save to keep out a Dessers header.
Some of Rangers’ attacks were too elaborate with a fondness for continued passing when shots were possible. That changed with a flurry of substitutions and Rangers’ wrapped the game up with two late goals from substitute Scott Wright.
Dundee couldn’t clear a Rangers attack and Kieran Dowell dinked a cross to the far post for WRIGHT to score number four with a close range volley.
In added time the Dark Blues were wide open when Rangers attacked and McCausland sent WRIGHT into the penalty area to score the fifth goal with a curling shot past McCracken.
Yet again the Dark Blues lost a game in which they took the lead, one of the very few disappointing aspects of this season. Dundee’s game plan worked perfectly until Rangers clawed their way back into the game with that crucial goal on the stroke of half time. From then on this was very much Rangers’ game. The scoreline was close until Rangers’ fourth goal after 87 minutes but the home side were in complete control and there was no doubt that the points were staying at Ibrox. The final score reflected Rangers’ second half dominance.
Rangers 4-2-3-1
Butland
Tavernier (c), Davies, King (McKinnon 75), Ridvan (Fraser 61)
Raskin, Diomande (Dowell 82)
McCausland, Cantwell, Silva (Roofe 82)
Dessers (Wright 82)
Unused subs: McCrorie (gk), Barisic, Yfeko, Lowry.
Goals: McCausland (45), Dessers (52), Cantwell (65). Wright (87, 90+3).
Booked: none.
Dundee FC 4-1-4-1
McCracken
McGhee, Astley, Portales, Dodgson
Sylla (Robertson 74)
Boateng (Mellon 86), Cameron, McCowan, Tiffoney (Costelloe 74)
Bakayoko (Main 74)
Unused subs: Sharp (gk), Mulligan, Robinson, Howley, Donnelly.
Goals: McGhee (38), Portales (40).
Booked: none.
Referee: Matthew MacDermid. Assistants: Daniel McFarlane, Chris Rae. Fourth Official: Gavin Duncan. VAR: Andrew Dallas. Assistant VAR: Graeme Leslie.
Attendance: 45,760.
Report: James Christie
