Rangers: John Souttar stuns BBC Sportsound pundit with ‘incredible’ surprise vs Hearts
John Souttar stunned Kenny Miller with an “incredible” assist for Cyriel Dessers as Rangers destroyed Hearts at Ibrox.
The BBC Sport pundit reacted live on Sportsound on 24 February as the Scottish defender curled a beautiful cross into the Jambos box for the Nigerian forward to volley home the Gers’ third in the 44th minute.
Dessers had missed three close-range chances earlier while also being flagged offside, but the quality of Souttar’s unlikely ball, as good as anything Borna Barisic or James Tavernier can produce, meant he couldn’t miss.
A shocked Miller said (3.47pm): “I’m just looking because I can see the offside [possibility], but it’s an incredible pass from John Souttar if it isn’t.
“He just whips this in early and Dessers is the one who’s on the move. He’s just off the shoulder here. It’s tight.”
Cyriel Dessers benefits from John Souttar star turn in blistering win
It is hard to find anything to fault in a stunning win against the third-placed side in the SPFL, who came in off the back of eight wins.
Rangers hit them early through Mohamed Diomande’s second-minute opener and, despite a period of wasted opportunities led by Dessers during the first half, took control before the break and ground the visitors into the dirt.
If there were doubts over the momentum behind Philippe Clement’s men before this they will be gone now, with all three January signings finding the net as Oscar Cortes and Fabio Silva also scored.
Dessers got a pair of confidence boosters and can thank Souttar for getting him off the mark, with a perfectly-placed ball over the Hearts defence to settle the game just before the break.
Ridvan Yilmaz was whipping in some quality deliveries, but few would have had centre-back Souttar as the man to produce the best one on a sparkling day all round.
It was just one part of a near-perfect game from the Light Blues, albeit one of the more surprising ones, and showed Clement was right in concentrating on his own players rather than Jambos dangerman Lawrence Shankland.
In other Rangers news, a “huge psychological bonus” was predicted, and has duly now been secured.
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