Rangers handed added incentive to be clinical v Aberdeen after Thursday development
Rangers manager Philippe Clement has done a fantastic job at Ibrox so far after taking over from the struggling Michael Beale.
But the Belgian is now undergoing his toughest week yet, with the Gers taking on Aberdeen in the Viaplay Cup final on Sunday (17 December), just three days after their Europa League win over Real Betis on Thursday (14 December).
The Dons were in action in Europe on the same night, with Barry Robson’s men producing a masterclass to defeat Eintracht Frankfurt 2-0 in the Europa Conference League.
The victory at Pittodrie should give Aberdeen plenty of confidence ahead of their meeting with Rangers at Hampden Park.
The impressive win against the German outfit was certainly hard-fought, with Frankfurt leaving Scotland very frustrated having dominated proceedings.
Their failures in front of goal should be noted by Clement, who will be desperate for his attackers to avoid that mistake and be as clinical as possible on Sunday.
The Ibrox strikers should be motivated enough by the fact that silverware is on the cards, but the statistics from Aberdeen’s shock win against Frankfurt should provide Clement with further incentive to really force home the idea of being clinical.
As per BBC Sport (14 December), the Bundesliga club had 78% possession, eight corners and 16 shots, but failed to score a single goal.
In stark contrast, the Scottish outfit had 22% possession, two corners and four shots, and managed to find the back of the net twice.
If recent history is anything to go by, Rangers should dominate the ball at Hampden, but they must be extremely wary of an upset, which could come about if they do not make the most of their expected superiority in terms of such statistics.
In positive news for the Gers, they certainly didn’t suffer from that issue against Betis, with attackers Abdallah Sima, Cyriel Dessers and Kemar Roofe all finding the back of the net.
In other Rangers news, Scott Brown has shared a Celtic admission ahead of the Viaplay Cup final clash between the Gers and Aberdeen.