Dundee 1-2 Rangers: Late Connor Goldson goal keeps champions in title race
- Published
Connor Goldson forced in in the 86th-minute to earn Rangers victory
Rangers had to be "a little bit lucky" to maintain their Scottish Premiership title hopes with a late comeback win over bottom side Dundee, says manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst.
Connor Goldson turned home a loose ball in the 86th minute to make sure the defending champions go into the Old Firm derby three points behind Celtic.
Rangers fell behind to Christie Elliot's sixth-minute strike before James Tavernier missed a penalty. But Aaron Ramsey's first goal for the club levelled before Goldson struck.
"It's a big relief to go away with the three points. It was a tough game," Van Bronckhorst told Sky Sports.
"We didn't start really well. Second half, we created more and sometimes you have to be a little bit lucky. And we were in the end when the ball dropped for Connor.
"Today could have cost us again two big points but we kept the belief and worked hard to get the win."
Dundee, meanwhile, stay four points adrift of the relegation play-off place despite a spirited display, with just seven games of the campaign remaining.
The Dens Park side had been swept aside on their own patch by Rangers only seven days ago in the quarter-final of the Scottish Cup, when they were 2-0 down after 25 minutes.
But with manager Mark McGhee on the touchline for the first time after completing a six-game ban and recovering from a bout of Covid-19, they started brilliantly and went in front when Elliot met Jordan Marshall's inch-perfect cross from the left.
Their work rate on an uneven pitch unsettled a lethargic Rangers, and Tavernier's miscue over the bar from the spot after Jordan McGhee was judged to have pulled Alfredo Morelos' shirt summed up their first half display.
Van Bronckhorst brought on Joe Aribo and Fashion Sakala at the break, but the game was delayed for a third time as Rangers fans protesting November's Australia friendly with Celtic threw toilet paper onto the pitch, having earlier flung on tennis balls.
Eventually, though, the team found their groove.
Dundee goalkeeper Ian Lawlor denied Morelos, Aribo and Ramsey before the Welshman finally turned the ball in from two yards out after substitute Kemar Roofe's header was saved.
Ramsey's goal and performance will be a boost to Wales as well as Rangers with a World Cup play-off at home to Austria to come on Thursday.
What followed the equaliser was not a Rangers' siege, but eventually their dominance of the ball told.
Goldson - who scored against Dundee last week - gambled by staying up the pitch after a set-piece, and when another Roofe effort was blocked, the centre-back was there to sweep home the crucial goal.
Man of the match - Jordan McGhee
The centre-back marshalled his side admirably and defended his box dilligently
What did we learn?
Dundee showed the type of gritty display they'll need if they're to save their Premiership status.
In the first half, wing-backs Marshall and Elliot got out to Rangers' wide attacking threats in Tavernier and Ryan Kent and prevented them having any influence.
The three centre-backs of McGhee, Ryan Sweeney and Cammy Kerr defended their box well and prevented Rangers having a shot on target in the first half.
However, in the last half hour the team ran out of steam and as the crosses and passes into their box kept coming, there was an inevitability about Rangers' winner.
As for the champions, this was not a good performance. They looked disjointed after Van Bronckhorst made the rare move of rotating his team heavily after a tiring night in Belgrade on Thursday.
However, they regained their composure in the second half on a difficult surface and put Dundee under enough pressure to make them fold.
At this stage of the season, it's about getting over the line and being only three points behind Celtic before welcoming their rivals to Ibrox is a big boost. Anything more would have drained their momentum.
What they said
Dundee manager Mark McGhee: "In the last half-hour, there was an inevitability about conceding, so we can't argue that, Rangers piled on the pressure.
"I was delighted with our first-half performance, the shape, the strategy, the execution of it, the intensity - we scored a great goal. Everything we had done on the training pitch was taken out there and that's really important to me.
"Then, we start to run out of energy. I don't think my lads could have given an ounce more."
Rangers captain James Tavernier on Sky Sports: "I thought we showed great character. We did not play to our level sin the first half and we knew second half we had to put in a really good performance.
"We were more patient on the ball, the substitutes made an impact and I am really pleased to come away with three points."
What's next?
After the international break Dundee host Aberdeen on 2 April at 15:00 BST, while Rangers face a crucial title tussle with rivals Celtic at Ibrox the next day (12:00).