Rangers-Aberdeen reaction: Warnock revels in Ibrox maelstrom, Miovski claim, ballboys quip, Clement gripe
Neil Warnock revelled in his first taste of Scottish football at Ibrox despite Aberdeen's 2-1 loss to Rangers and claimed he had not seen a better all-round striker in the English Premier League than Bojan Miovski.
At 75, he can be forgiven some exaggeration as well as his clear excitement at being back in the game after being persuaded to cut short his latest retirement. Along with Aberdeen fans, Warnock might have feared the worst when Rabbi Matondo gave Rangers the lead after just seven minutes. But Aberdeen equalised on the stroke of half time through Miovski, who struck his 20th goal of the season with a deft finish past Jack Butland.
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Hide AdTodd Cantwell scored the winner after 72 minutes although the hosts were reduced to ten men after substitute Dujon Sterling was red carded for a late challenge on Jack MacKenzie after 88 minutes. Referee Don Morrison was invited to review the challenge but stuck with his original decision, much to Ibrox manager Philippe Clement’s unhappiness. Clement said he would discuss with club officials before deciding whether to appeal or not.
It was Warnock’s first experience of VAR. “It was great to see a referee go across and not change his mind. We don’t get that in England,” he said. As for Miovski, Warnock is already a confirmed fan. “I said to him yesterday, ‘I’ve not seen one of you in the Premier League, let alone in Scotland’,” he said. “I think he’ll get 30 goals for me this season. I said to him, ‘I’m glad the window is closed! You’ve got me now and I’ve got you!’ He’s super, a good lad with good attitude. You don;’t normally get strikers who work their socks off but he does that. He gives us options as he drops off, so we can play another striker up there if we want.
“Like I say, it was my type of game, that. My type of atmosphere. When you get the ball-boys wasting time at the end in the last ten minutes you know you’re doing well, don’t you? They must be coached very well here, are they coached with the first team...? They throw it back when they are losing and when they are winning they hide the ball under their jumpers. I didn’t think you did that at this level. That was a new one for me that…”
Warnock now goes from Rangers to Bonnyrigg Rose in the Scottish Cup, in what is his home debut as manager. He believes he can take Aberdeen into the top six after the resolve as well as class from the likes of Miovski in evidence at Ibrox. But he did not want to look too far ahead. “When you are 75 you only look at the next game don’t you?!" he smiled. “You don’t look much further than that do you, bloody hell.”
Clement was satisfied by the performance of his team and delighted with the reaction of the fans, who he praised for staying with them. But he was not so enamoured with the late red card for Sterling, who had only been on the pitch a little over ten minutes.
“That it was a harsh decision for me,” he said. “Dujon slipped and he hits the toes of the opponent. I didn’t see until now many red cards when you (just) touch the opponent at his toes. So that is a harsh one and it makes the end of the game difficult but it (refereeing) is also a difficult profession, I know because we need to do it every day in training. At the end, the referee decides and we need to accept it.”
Clement said an appeal is “something we need to decide as a club”. He added: “I never make these decisions alone. But this one is quite clear I think. But we will still need to discuss this inside the club.”