Rangers left Yuki Kobayashi ‘traumatised’ before what happened with John Souttar in 3-0 defeat of Celtic – Hugh Keevins
Celtic defender Yuki Kobayashi was left “traumatised” by Rangers ace John Souttar in the latter’s 3-0 win on Saturday (13 May), according to journalist Hugh Keevins.
The Gers centre-back scored the second goal of the afternoon at Ibrox with a well-taken header in the 34th minute.
He beat Celtic defender Kobayashi to the ball from James Tavernier’s corner to score his first goal for Rangers.
“Todd Cantwell scored while Celtic were shell-shocked by the ferocity of Rangers’ beginning to the match,” Keevins wrote for the Daily Record.
“And Yuki Kobayashi was still traumatised when John Souttar outmuscled him to add to Rangers’ lead before half-time. The less said about Fashion Sakala’s goal, the better for Postecoglou.”
Impressive display
The impressive victory doesn’t mean anything at all in terms of the current campaign, but it was an important win nonetheless for Michael Beale and his Rangers players, who proved they can go toe-to-toe with their bitter rivals.
It was somewhat of a final audition for the Gers boss, who has come under pressure this season for his failure to overcome Ange Postecoglou’s side.
But it was also an audition for Souttar, who has been forced to watch on from the sidelines as Connor Goldson and Ben Davies have partnered at centre-back.
An unfortunate ankle injury has, of course, been the reason behind his lack of playing time, but now he is back on the pitch and back in contention for regular minutes under Beale.
He is one of plenty of Rangers players currently playing for a starting role for next season, with a major shake-up expected at Ibrox this summer.
In other Rangers news, James McFadden laid waste to one Gers player for his “dreadful” attitude shown throughout this season, ahead of what will be a “huge” summer for the club.