Rangers player ratings v Olympiacos – Vaclav Cerny stars, Robin Propper flops
Rangers and Olympiacos shared the spoils as they played out a 1-1 draw on Thursday in the UEFA Europa League.
Gers took on the Greek side Karaiskakis Stadium and managed to come out of the game with a point to their name.
Ayoub El Kaabi opened the scoring for the hosts while Cyriel Dessers scored in the second half to equalise for Philippe Clement’s side.
Here are our player ratings for the game:
Jack Butland – 5
Made the one save and he cannot really be faulted for the concession of the goal. He did look nervy at times and his accuracy with his long passes was nothing great but it’s not the kind of game where he had much to do.
Dujon Sterling – 7
It came as no surprise that Gers conceded right after he came off as he was solid in the backline for the visitors. He didn’t look injured either so unless Clement was told to bring him off as a precaution, this one did not make sense. He was imperious defensively and bullied the opponents in the air. Sterling even got forward as much as he could so there can be no complaints about his lack of enthusiasm.
John Souttar – 4
Certainly could have done better for the Olympiacos goal and for a defender whose primary job is to be winning the ball back and keeping goals out, the Scotland centre-back failed to do a good job. He cannot be offering that kind of freedom to attackers and he’s going to get punished for that more often than not.
Robin Propper – 3
Was in no man’s land when Olympiacos opened the scoring as he struggled to keep up for most of the game. He even struggled to head the ball at times and made a number of errors that could’ve proven to be costly. The Dutchman even struggled to get the ball out of defence at times and it was a dismal display from the centre-back.
Jefte – 4
Not the best of games defensively or offensively for the Brazilian and it’s one he’d have to learn a lot from. His passing and decision-making were woeful and he contributed little to nothing going forward. Clement would’ve wanted to see more of him bombing up and down the pitch but he got none of that.
Connor Barron – 8
Once again, put in an outstanding performance in the heart of Rangers’ midfield. He’s got some engine on him and there was no surprise to see him running up and down the pitch as that’s what he’s done all season for Gers. He was absolutely everywhere and made things difficult for the hosts in the middle of the park.
Nicolas Raskin – 7
Had another excellent game in the heart of midfield and did not shy away from throwing himself into tackles. Was combative, aggressive and rarely gave anything away to the Olympiacos players. He did pick up a yellow card, but on the balance of things, it was worth getting booked and Clement will be impressed with his performance.
Vaclav Cerny – 9
Once again, Cerny was the star of the show and was often being given the ball by the rest of his teammates to go out and wing his magic. He was taking on players for fun and looked like he could make something happen whenever he had the ball at his feet. He set up Dessers’ first goal and with better players, he would undoubtedly have had two or three assists to his name.
Mohammed Diomande – 7
Had a good game playing in midfield and was calm and composed in possession. He put his body on the line time and again and while the Olympiacos players did get the better of him on a few occasions, he continued with the same grit and rigour.
Nedim Bajrami – 7
Showed glimpses of his brilliance and was unlucky to not find the back of the net. He’s fit into this Gers team well and only seems to be getting better with each passing game.
Cyriel Dessers – 6
A wonderful bit of skill as he bagged the equaliser for the visitors which is what left fans wondering why he cannot replicate this regularly. He’s certainly extremely talented but lacks the consistency. Even before the goal, he missed good chances to find the back of the net which is not ideal.
Substitutes
Neraysho Kasanwirjo – 6
James Tavernier – 4
Ross McCausland – 5
Hamza Igamane – 4
In other Rangers, a “progressive” manager has been linked to take over from Philippe Clement after rejecting a job elsewhere.
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