Dundee win highlights evolution of Mark Warburton's Rangers
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This was first mooted at the start of the season, as they almost let St Mirren equalise at Ibrox on opening night (Steven Thompson’s penalty remains one of the biggest gaffes of the season) despite absolutely dominating the match. They then allowed Hibs to have two glorious chances before James Tavernier’s free-kick won the first league meeting between the pre-season favourites. Such suspicions were then confirmed when St Johnstone rocked up to Ibrox in the League Cup and Michael O’Halloran tore them a new one, while defeats to Hibs and then Falkirk established the narrative.
However, since the New Year there’s been a dramatic shift in the story arc. Instead of scoring three or four and letting in the occasional goal at the other end, Rangers have won matches by keeping clean sheets. The struggle to beat Falkirk followed by a 0-0 draw with Kilmarnock and two points dropped at Alloa led many to pose a new question. This one relating to the attack: why weren’t Rangers scoring enough goals?
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Hide AdBoth the goals for and goals against criticism will likely come back at some stage before the end of the season. After all, it is football. Even the most stable minded of observers can be incredibly fickle. However, for the team being Rangers were able blow both of these narratives out of the water with the 4-0 victory against Dundee on Saturday. Against Kane Hemmings, a 20-goal scorer this season, and former Player of the Year nominee Greg Stewart, they were resolute in defence and really limited what Dundee could do. Further forward they were able to run rings around their bewildered opponents, scoring four and going close to adding a couple more.
So, what’s changed? Well, Rangers, in order to tighten things up at the back, have stopped throwing everything including the kitchen sink at opposing teams. It used to be that they’d send forward both full backs - Lee Wallace and James Tavernier - on every attack, while Andy Halliday (playing the role of least “defensive” defensive midfielder ever) would hang around 25 yards from goal. For many teams this was too much to handle, particularly at the start of the season when nobody had seen anything like this. However, those who were able to withstand the pressure found few bodies blocking their own route to goal on the occasions where they were able to break on the counter. This led to the humbling experiences against Saints and Falkirk, in particular.
Since the turn of the year this has been curtailed. Now, typically, only one of Wallace or Tavernier will charge forward, while the use of Dominic Ball at the defensive midfielder spot, even if he hasn’t played there all the time, underlines a newly found cautiousness. This subtle change was never going to be enough for opposing defences, particularly those in the lower end of the Championship, to start attacking Rangers from all angles. They keep the same game plan of sitting back and trying to counter. Opponents have therefore found it easier to stop Rangers from scoring five, but they’ve found it more difficult to expose them on the at the other end.
Against Dundee, Rangers found an opponent with ambitions of winning the game on the merit of their own attacking prowess. This may have been aided the by loss of an early goal, with neither Kevin Holt, Darren O’Dea or keeper Scott Bain covering themselves in glory after only 13 seconds, but it’s certain Dundee would have fancied their chances more than your average Championship side.
The extra space granted to the hosts certainly helped Kenny Miller, who had a fabulous afternoon at the head of the attack. The veteran never scored himself, but his movement dragged defenders all over the place while his scampering determination to close down opponents unsettled the away side throughout. He thrived in the areas that have long been too crowded to work in.
Due to the Scottish Cup draw and Rangers sitting atop the Championship with an almost unassailable lead, every aspect of their play will now become scrutinised in the lead up to the match with Celtic. It’s pointless going through any tactical preview now because the game is six weeks away and a number of variables could occur. But had the sides met earlier in the season, it’s probable Mark Warburton would have set them out they same way he did for his first four months, such was his believe in the side and the system, and they would likely have been slaughtered. Now they’ve got a fighting chance.
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