Philippe Clement signing will never play for Rangers again after new developments
Rangers battled to draw 2-2 with Aberdeen on Sunday, coming back from two down despite being reduced to 10 men.
Aberdeen went ahead in the first half thanks to Leighton Clarkson’s free-kick, which got the better of Liam Kelly, with things going from bad to worse when Ross McCausland was sent off after two yellows.
Pape Gueye then doubled Aberdeen’s advantage before half-time, and Barry Ferguson’s men were seemingly in for a tough day at the office.
But, Hamza Igamane and Ianis Hagi both scored in the second half to earn an unlikely point on the road for the Bears at the very death at Pittodrie.
Rafael Fernandes suffers crushing injury blow
Another disappointing moment arrived for Ferguson and Co when defender Rafael Fernandes was injured in the first half and had to be replaced by James Tavernier.
Ideally, Tavernier would not have played such a large part in Rangers’ clash with Aberdeen, as the Ibrox club would have liked the Englishman to be as fresh as possible for the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final clash with Athletic Bilbao.
The tie is still level at 0-0 after Ferguson’s men heroically kept a clean sheet despite Robin Propper’s early red card.
Fernandes could have played his last game for Rangers already
The extent of Fernandes’ injury is yet to be revealed, but Philippe Clement’s winter transfer window loan signing has been a failure at Ibrox.
| Rafael Fernandes stats | 2024/25 Scottish Premiership |
| Appearances | 2 |
| Starts | 1 |
Even if the Portugal youth international is fit to play for the Light Blues between now and the end of the season, Ferguson is unlikely to call upon his services.
The Gers’ clash with Aberdeen marked Fernandes’ first start in the Scottish Premiership, and will now go down as a full top-flight debut that lasted just 20 minutes.
The 22-year-old’s only other start in Rangers colours came on 9 February, when the Bears suffered an embarrassing 1-0 defeat to Queen’s Park in the Scottish Cup.
Fernandes’ contributions to such a notable loss, which ensured that the Gers’ only silverware hopes now rest in the Europa League, epitomise how poor his Ibrox stint has been.
In all likelihood, Rangers’ draw at Aberdeen will have marked the man on loan from Lille’s fourth and final appearance for the Ibrox club.