Jefte blasted over ‘silly’ incident despite Rangers win v Viktoria Plzen
Jefte was picked out for a moment of madness despite an impressive Rangers win against Viktoria Plzen on Tuesday.
The Gers have more than a firm grip on a place in the Champions League play-offs after a huge 3-0 victory at Ibrox on 5 August.
A Djeidi Gassama brace and a Cyriel Dessers penalty proved to be the difference on the night against the Czech outfit in Govan.
Despite the buzz around the Light Blues’ performance and the result, it was the antics of Jefte which caught the eye of Steven Thompson.
Jefte lets frustrations show v Viktoria Plzen
There is no hiding from the complete performance of Russell Martin’s side in what was initially gearing up to be a nervy affair in G51.
Chances were there at points for the travelling outfit, but where Miroslav Koubek’s side didn’t take their chances, the same couldn’t be said for the Gers.
With that being said, it wasn’t necessarily a perfect performance for everyone wearing blue, as the Brazilian left-back once again frustrated at times.
In what was his first start of the season, the 21-year-old did show some flashes of quality but was let down by a poor moment in the first half.
On 41 minutes, the defender took a poor touch before losing possession, before swiping the legs of Lukas Cerv and picking up a yellow card for his trouble.
It is fair to say that this didn’t go down well with former Light Blues ace Thompson live on BBC Scotland (5 August, 08:28pm).
He said: “Rightly so [he was booked]. It’s a silly challenge, that. He’s probably just frustrated with his touch, but he’s never getting away with that, the referee is 10 feet away.”
Jefte in mixed bag performance for Rangers again
After signing from Fluminense last campaign, there were high hopes for the Brazilian talent in the Scottish Premiership.
It is fair to say that under Philippe Clement and Barry Ferguson, the full-back was unable to showcase that on a regular enough basis.
| Stat (Scottish Premiership 24/25) | Jefte |
| Appearances | 33 |
| Goal involvements | 5 |
| Tackles won | 42 |
| Dribble success (%) | 46 |
That doesn’t appear to have changed under Martin, with yet another up and down showing for the Light Blues when given a chance by the Englishman.
With that being said, the balance of the team was much better with Max Aarons on the right and Jefte on the left, so the decision hangs in the balance surrounding the number 22.
Sign up for the Ibrox News WhatsApp channel and turn on notifications to have all the latest, breaking Rangers news sent straight to your phone.