Rangers edge Kilmarnock to extend lead to 21 points thanks to Ryan Jack's stunner

Rangers moved 21 points clear of Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premiership thanks to Ryan Jack's stunning finish against Kilmarnock at Ibrox.

The Scotland midfielder's volley just before the break was enough to give Steven Gerrard's side a 14th consecutive home league win.

Dogged Kilmarnock limited the leaders to a handful of chances.

But they rarely threatened at the other end and have now lost both games under new manager Tommy Wright.

Hamilton Academical's win away to Motherwell means Kilmarnock are now only a point above the bottom two sides, having played more games than both.

A seventh defeat in a row for the Ayrshire side - and their third in succession this season against Rangers without scoring - will leave Wright in no doubt that, while Gerrard's side continue to edge closer to the title, his new charges face a fight against relegation unless they can find goals from somewhere.

• Reaction & as it happened

It is the reason why Wright this week signed Kyle Lafferty following the Northern Ireland international's exit from Reggina, but the former Rangers striker's lack of match fitness denied him a debut against his former side.

They could certainly have done with more bite up front against a Rangers side who again failed to reach their early-season heights following Sunday's disappointing display in drawing with Hamilton.

With both Kemar Roofe and Alfredo Morelos suspended and Cedric Itten on his own up front, Gerrard's team were proving toothless in attack and another frustrating afternoon looked in store as they struggled to tip-tap their way through Kilmarnock's crowded 4-5-1 formation.

James Tavernier had the ball in the net from Itten's neat flick only to be ruled offside, but that was their only clear sight until a sublime bit of skill from Jack eight minutes before the break.

After a couple of Kilmarnock blocks inside the penalty box, it fell to the Scotland midfielder 18 yards out and he controlled it neatly with the instep then volleyed it powerfully past goalkeeper Colin Doyle.

It was a finish that fully justified Gerrard's decision to restore Jack and Steven Davis to his midfield.

Either because the goal inspired Rangers or because the visitors were forced to look for an equaliser, the home side were suddenly finding a little more space and Doyle's fingertips denied Ryan Kent drives either side of the break.

Joe Aribo also squandered a great chance when put clean through by Kent.

Kilmarnock will probably feel aggrieved that they were not given the chance of an equaliser when they were denied a late free-kick after Danny Whitehall was fouled by Leon Balogun just outside the penalty box, but a draw would have flattered the visitors.

Man of the match - Ryan Kent

Rangers winger Ryan Kent (left) was a constant threat to the Kilmarnock defence

What did we learn?

Gerrard will be pleased that the Rangers juggernaut is back on track after that little hiccup against Accies last weekend.

There is no sign of the second half of the season collapses that have dogged his time as Rangers boss and they are developing the habit of champions: grinding out wins despite not playing at their best and while without their top marksmen.

Wright knew the magnitude of his task when he took charge of Kilmarnock and the latest defeat will underline the need to get Lafferty up to speed as quickly as possible.

They are now on the worst losing run from any team in the Premiership this season. However, as with Wednesday's narrow defeat by Motherwell, he will again take positives from a spirited performance.

What they said

Rangers manager Steven Gerrard: "Fantastic goal - any midfielder would be happy with a strike like that.

"We came off ourselves last week in terms of our identity, but we bounced back today with another strong win even though the scoreline doesn't suggest that. That's another clean sheet - 14 wins out of 14 at home [in the league]."

Kilmarnock manager Tommy Wright: "I was disappointed at the goal on two points; one, we should clear our lines better and two, it was handball, after the header it hits the Rangers player's hand. The official should see that.

"Whilst there are positives in terms of the effort and work rate and the shape we had was good, ultimately there is huge disappointment that we didn't do enough in the final third."

What's next?

Rangers travel to Belgium to face Royal Antwerp in the Europa League last 32 on Thursday (20:00 GMT) before hosting Dundee United in the Premiership a week on Sunday (15:00). Meanwhile, Kilmarnock face another difficult away day against fourth-top Aberdeen next Saturday (15:00).