GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - JULY 18: A general view during the pre-season friendly match between Rangers and Newcastle at Ibrox Stadium on July 18, 2023 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Serena Taylor/Newcastle United via Getty Images)
Cyriel Dessers is certain that Rangers will flourish under Philippe Clement and that the team’s locker room has a fresh vibe. After taking up the captaincy last Sunday, the Belgian received a standing ovation before of yesterday’s match, which gave the Ibrox supporters immediate motivation as Gers thrashed Hibs 4-0. After 17 minutes, Rangers were rewarded for their direct play and faster tempo when attacker Abdallah Sima scored a beautiful goal to make it seven goals in seven games. Just before halftime, midfielder Nicolas Raskin extended the lead with a long-range shot; ten minutes remaining, Sima scored a third goal; and Dessers completed a sweeping victory with his close-range strike.
“The manager wants us to play with energy and show it as well to the fans; high pressing, play aggressively and forward,” the 28-year-old Nigerian international said to RangersTV. “We demonstrated some of this, but we still have a long way to go in terms of development. We’ll undoubtedly accomplish that, and after that, we’ll be a formidable team. It’s a feature of the game I enjoy playing. This was a start in the right direction, but I’m still not at my best right now. “I hope we can keep going with the new energy in the dressing room, the new employees, and the supporters.” Dessers gave Todd Cantwell, a replacement, credit for putting him up for his goal, which completed what was likely Rangers’ finest performance of the year.
“You could see Todd’s quality when he came on,” the speaker stated. I watched James Tavernier, sometimes known as Tav, make his usual rush and drag two defenders with him, which allowed me to break free just in time.
“Todd made an incredible pass to find me, and I pretended to shoot before placing it in the corner. I’m thrilled with the outcome. “The ambiance was astounding.” We picked up several early goals in the second half, which energized the crowd, and the manager told us at halftime that we had the support of the supporters. “After that, you can see what Ibrox has to offer, and it was a pleasant afternoon to play with 50,000 people.”
The Easter Road team’s six-game winning streak—five of which came under Nick Montgomery—was snapped by a formidable Rangers display. The Hibs manager stated, “I genuinely thought we quietened them down at the start, played some good stuff, but the first goal is really important.”
Following that, they feel a little less pressure and are able to focus more on the game. We had a chance to tie the score at that point, but the second goal actually came at the wrong time. “You have to try to play when behind 2-0. You won’t score a goal if you just stand there.
However, we struggled in the last third. We also lost because of a few careless errors made in the back against skilled players. For me, that was the frustrating aspect.
