Doug Ward

Wed 19 October 2022 22:03, UK

Rangers progressed to the semi-finals of the Premier Sports Cup with a less-than-impressive 1-0 win over Championship side Dundee at Ibrox on Wednesday night.

Steve Davis’ ninth-minute goal was enough to book the Gers’ spot in the final four, where they’ll play either Celtic, Aberdeen or Kilmarnock.

It was a blunt performance by Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s men and here, Ibrox News has rated the players out of 10 for their displays:

Jon McLaughlin – 5

McLaughlin pretty much had nothing to do so it’s hard to give the goalkeeper, who’s rightly the second-choice at Ibrox now, a rating higher than an average five.

James Tavernier – 5

Tavernier looked tired and should not have played in this game. How far is van Bronckhorst going to push the club captain before he realises he needs a rest? Yes, the World Cup break is coming up but there are a lot of big matches between now and then.

James Sands – 6

Sands wasn’t really tested but played some decent passes. He’ll probably never have an easier game for the club than that.

Leon King – 6

You can say pretty much the same about King’s performance as you can about Sands’. There were some good moments for the youngster but there was nothing that stood out. There didn’t need to be, to be fair.

Ridvan Yilmaz – 8

Finally, we get to see Yilmaz play. Unfortunately, we cannot accurately say how good the young Turkish left-back is because his performance was only against a Scottish Championship side. But he played very well. Yilmaz blocked crosses and linked up effectively with Wright.

John Lundstram – 6

Lundstram was cool, calm and collected in possession – but he was perhaps too much so. Lundstram slowed play down a lot and that played right into Dundee’s hands as they sat back and soaked up any pressure we created.

Steven Davis – 8

Davis was in the right place at the right time to score the opening goal of the game and continued to impress throughout. He may have been the oldest Rangers player on the pitch but he easily had the most energy. Some of his teammates need to learn from Davo.

Malik Tillman – 6

It was a decent display by Tillman. But when you’re an international attacker on loan from Bayern Munich, you’d expect better than just “decent” against a mid-table Scottish Championship side. Tillman still needs to up his game a lot.

Fashion Sakala – 3

What a stinker that was by Sakala. He just couldn’t do anything right whether he was on the right wing or on the left. Sakala struggled to get crosses into the box, he struggled to cut inside and struggled to link up with the full-backs. We’re losing patience with Sakala. If he can’t do it against Dundee, what hope does he have?

Scott Wright – 7

Wright was one of the best players on the park on the night. He was involved in almost all of the best attacking play from Rangers. We won’t get excited because Wright’s performance in the bigger games and in the Scottish Premiership have been nowhere near it. He’s one who should be fighting for his Ibrox future but this display bodes well for him at least.

Alfredo Morelos – 4

Morelos had a big chance to score when Tavernier played him through for a one-on-one in the first half but his shot was straight at the goalkeeper. It was another sub-par performance from El Bufalo. We’re not sure if he’s fully fit yet but Colak is easily the first-choice striker at Ibrox.

Substitutions:

Charlie McCann (on for Davis ’74) – 5

Scott Arfield (on for Tillman, ’74) – 5

Kemar Roofe (on for Morelos, ’74) – 5

In other Rangers news, this Gers player “knows he’s done” after BBC Sportscene shared footage of him.