The 2024-25 Premiership season set in motion on Saturday lunchtime with an intriguing encounter between Hearts and Rangers. The Light Blues travelled to Tynecastle to clash heads with Steven Naismith’s men, but they failed to clinch a victory as it finished in a stalemate after a well-contested 90 minutes.
Below are the Rangers players rated in their 0-0 draw against Hearts.
Jack Butland: 7.5
Made some crucial saves to deny James Penrice and Lawrence Shankland. Was fortunate not to concede when Yan Dhanda’s deflected attempt hit the woodwork.
James Tavernier: 7
The skipper looked sharp with his trademark runs down the right-hand flank. Whipped in crosses and long balls from the wide, but he failed with his dribbling attempts along with final deliveries into the attacking third.
John Souttar: 7
Struggled at times against Shankland, but the former Hearts centre-half showed his resilience with no-nonsense clearances and aerial supremacy. Tried his best to play it out from the back with calmness and composure.
Ben Davies: 6
Looked nervy against the flair and footwork of Kenneth Vargas. Made some tackles and won a few duels, but the Englishman’s discomfort resulted in a substitution around the hour mark. Veteran Leon Balogun replaced him in the heart of the backline.
Ridvan Yilmaz: 7
Was lively from the left-hand flank with overlapping runs, crosses, cut insides and link-up football. Balanced his game between defence and attack. A run of appearances should improve his end product.
Connor Barron: 7.5
A decent debut in the centre of the pitch. The young Scotsman forced Zander Clark to make a crucial save from his long-range effort. His work rate, down-the-middle runs and physical presence helped Rangers dominate possession. Made way for Kieran Dowell late in the contest.
Mohamed Diomande: 6.5
Got dispossessed on a few occasions, but he made quick recoveries to avoid a setback. Was combative deep down the midfield, however, the Ivory Coast international needs to put in more effort while engaging in duels and challenges.
Scott Wright: 5.5
Hardly had any moment down the flank except for drawing a few fouls. Was replaced by the summer signing Vaclav Cerny around the hour mark.
Tom Lawrence: 6.5
The Welshman exhibited his creative spark as a ‘number 10’. Was denied by Clark early into the second half, but he lost the most number of duels failing to showcase his work rate and all-round game.
Oscar Cortes: 5
Another disappointing afternoon for the Colombian who sustained yet another injury that forced him to leave the pitch soon after the half-time break. Rabbi Matondo was introduced in place of the wide attacker.
Cyriel Dessers: 6
Came close to finding the net multiple times. But his wastefulness cost him all those chances as he did everything right except the finishing.
Rangers Subs Vs Hearts
Rabbi Matondo: 7
Looked menacing with his sharp runs and flashy movements.
Leon Balogun: 6.5
Calmed things down in deep defence. Also tried to maintain the high line while dealing with counter-attacking threats.
Václav Černý: 6
Needs more time to attune to the grind, demands and aggression of Scottish football.
Kieran Dowell: NA
Played too little to warrant a rating.
