Rangers faced off against St. Johnstone at McDiarmid Park earlier this afternoon hoping to pick up all three points on the road. Steven Gerrard’s men made a sloppy start to the game as they conceded an early goal when Callum Hendry scored in the 8th minute. The home side defended valiantly to go into the half-time break with a one-goal advantage.
Florian Kamberi came off the bench and made an immediate impact by netting the equaliser with an excellent finish just five minutes into the second half. Joe Aribo gave his team the lead in the 71st minute via his finish from close range. However, Steve May equalised for St. Johnstone just ten minutes later to set-up an exciting final few minutes of the match.
The contest ended with the Glaswegian giants coming away with a hard-fought 2-2 draw from Perth. Let’s take a look at how each Rangers players performed during the match against St. Johnstone.
Rangers Players Rated In Entertaining Draw Vs St. Johnstone
GK: Allan McGregor – 5.5/10
He made a couple of important stops but still ended up conceding two goals during the game. McGregor will be hoping for better days in a Rangers shirt.
RB: James Tavernier – 7/10
The Gers skipper was a constant menace for the opposition down the right flank. He whipped in several inviting crosses and was responsible for orchestrating Kamberi’s equaliser just after the half-time break. However, he had a few nervy moments defensively and won’t be happy after conceding two goals today.
CB: Connor Goldson – 5/10
He had an off-day at the heart of the Gers defence and struggled to command his own box alongside a mistake-prone Katic.
CB: Nikola Katic – 3/10
The Croatian defender missed a great chance early in the game as he failed to hit the target. He made an unfortunate mistake when he allowed Hendry to score the opening goal of the match in the 8th minute. The centre-back was once again at fault for not clearing his lines in the lead-up to May’s equaliser in the second half.
LB: Andy Halliday – 4/10
Halliday had a tough game while operating out on the left side of Gerrard’s defence. He struggled to create anything meaningful going forward and was defensively vulnerable as well. The makeshift full-back will be disappointed after getting subbed off at half-time.
CM: Ryan Jack – 6/10
His goal-bound attempt was expertly saved by St. Johnstone’s Zander Clark early in the first half. He struggled a bit defensively but played a key role in the lead-up to Aribo’s goal in the 71st minute.
CM: Joe Aribo – 7.5/10
Aribo made a bright start to the game and created some decent opportunities to score in the first half. He did well after changing positions to operate as the left-back following Halliday’s substitution at half-time. The Nigeria international completed the turnaround by popping up with a goal in the second half, but it was not enough for his team to claim maximum points.
CM: Scott Arfield – 6/10
He linked up play well with others and made some intelligent runs in and around the opposition penalty box. Arfield came close to scoring twice but was denied by some excellent shot-stopping from Clark.
LW: Ryan Kent – 6/10
The former Liverpool winger came close to scoring but had his shot saved by Clark early in the first 45. He didn’t have his shooting boots on and spurned two decent chances to test the opposition goalie. However, he was a real headache for the St. Johnstone defenders and deserved credit for his link-up play and hunger to get involved in the final third.
RW: Ianis Hagi – 5/10
Despite putting in a goal-scoring display versus Braga on Thursday night, Hagi struggled to make any real impact today as he lacked the cutting edge down the right flank.
ST: Alfredo Morelos – 6/10
The Colombian striker tried his best to make a difference for Rangers going forward but failed to find a finishing touch during the contest.
Substitutes:
ST: Florian Kamberi – 8/10
The Albanian marksman was a real game-changer after coming off the bench at half-time as he took just five minutes to net the equaliser with a brilliant finish. He also made a clever turn and found Aribo with a superb cross in the lead-up to Rangers’ second goal of the game.
CM: Steven Davis – 5/10
He came on for the final few minutes but struggled to make any real impression.
ST: Greg Stewart – 5/10
The Gers forward was largely ineffective during his time on the pitch.
