Oliver Antman: Rangers winger delivers poor performance as Finland lose to Cape Verde
Oliver Antman didn’t play well for Finland in the early hours of Monday morning, as the Rangers winger’s side were beaten on penalties by Cape Verde.
The 24-year-old started the game for Finland, which got under way at 04:00am BST on Monday.
It was an international friendly match played at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, and it was Finland who took the lead just before half-time.
However, Cape Verde – who are set to be one of the stories of this summer’s World Cup – equalised with a little over 20 minutes to play, before the two sides contested a penalty shootout which the Finns lost 4-2.
Antman will now head back to Glasgow hoping to play a significant role in Rangers’ remaining seven games of the Scottish Premiership season.
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How did Oliver Antman perform for Finland vs Cape Verde?
Antman hasn’t played a big role for Rangers in his debut season at Ibrox, starting just six times in the Scottish Premiership, with his 13 league appearances culminating in 569 minutes of top-flight action.
However, the former Go Ahead Eagles star does have a goal and two assists from those minutes, and when Danny Rohl has called upon him from the bench, he’s often looked lively.
| Antman’s 25-26 Scottish Premiership stats | Result |
| Big chances created | 2 |
| Pass accuracy | 89% |
| Long ball accuracy | 75% |
| Dribble success | 39% |
| Ground duels won | 41% |
So, this March international break has provided Antman with the opportunity to make a real impression on Rohl for his country, as he looks to carve out a bigger role before the end of the season.
Unfortunately, however, the Rangers man probably didn’t do enough to convince the Gers boss that he should hand him more opportunities thanks to his disappointing performance against Cape Verde.
He started and played 72 minutes against the African side on Monday morning, before being replaced by Kairat Almaty’s Oiva Jukkola.
As per Sofascore, Antman registered zero shots on goal, played no key passes, his two cross attempts were unsuccessful and he took just 25 touches in the game.
He also was unsuccessful with his two dribble attempts, lost the ball eight times, won only three of his seven ground duels and committed a foul as well.
In order for him to break into Rangers’ starting lineup, he will surely have required a more impactful display for Finland than the one he gave against Cape Verde.
Antman may need Mikey Moore luck to win key Rangers role
Right now, Antman looks to be a player that may well have to settle for a career at Ibrox that largely consists of him being an impact sub off the bench.
However, that could change for him if certain dice roll in his favour in the coming weeks, and a lot of that could be down to what happens with Mikey Moore.
Should Tottenham get relegated from the Premier League to the EFL Championship this season, then Spurs will likely want to utilise the talented winger in their second tier side next term.
If that turns out to be the case, this could open up the door for Antman to step into Moore’s shoes and win a place in the Gers XI for 2026-27.
But, if the Lilywhites can retain their Premier League status, then they’ll no doubt be more inclined to let him return to Ibrox for another loan spell, and that could be disastrous for Antman’s chances of evolving into a starting role.
Moore would pretty much unanimously be welcomed back to Glasgow with open arms by Rangers fans, but one person who may not be as delighted to see him return could be Antman.
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