BBC Sportsound pundit shares ‘criminal’ Rangers clash v Aberdeen verdict, Celtic comparison made
BBC pundit Rory Loy has urged Aberdeen boss Jim Goodwin to be more positive against Rangers this week than he was against Celtic.
Celtic rescued three points against Aberdeen on Saturday through Callum McGregor’s late winner, and much has been made about Goodwin’s decision to play defensively against the league leaders.
Next up for the third-placed Dons is a visit from Rangers – who are fresh from a scrappy 3-2 victory over Hibernian. Speaking on BBC Sportsound, Loy insisted that it would be “criminal” for Goodwin to set up his side defensively again.
“I know they got a pasting at Ibrox, but Rangers are not the same beast as Celtic,” said Loy, as quoted by BBC Sport.
“Rangers’ backline has got three of four players playing out of position. If Jim Goodwin sets up that same way against Rangers, it would be criminal.
“There’s an opportunity there. He can’t be as expansive as he was at Ibrox. But he has to come up with something so when they win the ball back they go: How do we get close to the opposition goal?”
Bring it on
Most Rangers fans will admit that the defensive situation at Ibrox is bleak at the moment. But with both Connor Goldson and Ben Davies returning from injury soon, there’s hope that Michael Beale can turn things around.
With injuries plaguing Rangers’ season, the defensive line has so often consisted of either young and inexperienced players or players from other positions filling in.
It was seen against Hibernian this week with 22-year-old James Sands partnering midfielder John Lundstram in central defence. So while the defence has been below par this season, it’s understandable.
But Goldson and Davies could return to face Aberdeen this week, and so Goodwin adopting an open and expansive style of play could play into Rangers’ hands.
The 4-1 drubbing at Ibrox earlier this season came from Goodwin trying to go toe-to-toe with Gers and failing. He risks doing the same again on Tuesday evening.
In other Rangers news, a mass exodus at Ibrox is still possible in January after Michael Beale’s latest comments