By Pranav Shahaney

10th Dec, 2022 | 2:51pm

Rangers player ratings in Bayer Leverkusen showdown in Michael Beale debut

Michael Beale got off to the perfect start in his first unofficial game as Rangers manager with them beating Bayer Leverkusen 3-0 on 10 December.

Malik Tillman scored an impressive brace in the first half before Scott Arfield put the game beyond the reach of the Bundesliga side.

James Tavernier’s penalty miss was one of the few downsides in what was an impressive performance by the 55-time champions at Ibrox.

Ibrox News have rated the players out of 10 below…

Allan McGregor – 6

He’ll certainly have busier games than this and his rating is less to do with his performance and more to do with the opposition’s. Leverkusen rarely threatened the Rangers goal and despite going two goals down, Xabi Alonso failed to get a response from his team.

James Tavernier – 8

A sensational first-half display from the Englishman who tirelessly ran up and down the pitch. Provided an assist for both of Tillman’s goals. An accurate cross for the first one which was scored by the 20-year-old and for the second, took a perfect corner which the American calmly headed home. His rather awful penalty in the second half will certainly bring his rating down a point as it was highly unlike him.

James Sands – 7

Kept the Bayer attackers at bay and looked confident whenever he brought the ball out of defence. If this was an audition for a first-team berth, he’s certainly come out with flying colours.

Leon King – 7

A mature performance from the 18-year-old who seems to have come a long way since his Rangers debut. Looks like he’s been part of this side for many years and we certainly cannot wait to see how far he goes.

Adam Devine – 7

Did extremely well on the opposite side of the defence and never looked like he was out of place. There was a real hunger and desire from him each time he got forward and did not shy away from his defensive responsibilities either. The 19-year-old certainly gave the fans their money’s worth.

Ryan Jack – 6

Provided a solid base in midfield that allowed Glen Kamara to venture forward on occasion and give Gers an extra body in the middle and final third. Wasn’t really threatened with Leverkusen not playing at the level they’re usually known for.

Glen Kamara – 7

Kamara certainly didn’t play like someone who’s been affected by all the talk surrounding his exit in the past few weeks. He was his calm, press resistant self and did exceptionally well to link the defence to the attack. Did not make any mistakes either and appeared to be enjoying himself out there.

Malik Tillman – 9

Undoubtedly the Man of the Match. Tillman showed why Bayern Munich rated him so highly at one point. Still only 20, Tillman can go places if he keeps playing like this. Today, we did see him working a lot off the ball as well – something that’s been a criticism. Beale will certainly be delighted with the brace as well.

Ryan Kent – 7

Was extremely mobile in the time he was on the pitch and linked up well with Tillman and Kamara as he posed a constant threat to the Leverkusen back line. He did not play like someone who’s not enjoying his time at Ibrox.

Rabbi Matondo – 7

Much like Kent, was given the freedom to get forward whenever he wanted and there were good link ups with players around him. He put in a few telling crosses as well but unfortunately none resulted in goals.

Antonio Colak – 5

Was quiet in front of goal but that was perhaps because he was trying to drop deeper than normal to let the other players around him make runs inside the box. Whether or not that’s something Beale has asked him to do, remains to be seen.

Select subs

Fashion Sakala – 4

Got a little over 20 minutes when he came off the bench at half-time but did not have the same impact as Rabbi Matondo did and was eventually withdrawn for Alex Lowry.

Scott Arfield – 6

Came off the bench at half-time and looked lively. Did not stay deep as we thought he would and kept getting into the box looking to put his name on the scoresheet. He eventually succeeded doing that late on in the game courtesy of an impressive pass by Alfredo Morelos.

Alfredo Morelos – 5

Used his physicality well to draw fouls and eventually won himself a penalty in the second half of the contest which Tavernier failed to even get on target. He once again saw defenders being drawn to him and he played a quick pass to Arfield who then made it 3-0.

In other Rangers news, a BBC pundit has savaged a senior player at Ibrox after what he saw him do this week.