Rangers 1-3 Aberdeen: Visitors intensify pressure on Michael Beale with rare Ibrox win
- Published
Rangers' defeat by Aberdeen means they are now seven points behind leaders Celtic at this early stage
Aberdeen stunned Rangers and intensified the pressure on manager Michael Beale with their first Scottish Premiership win at Ibrox in more than five years.
Following four straight wins in all competitions, the defeat is Beale's third league loss in seven games, which leaves the Govan side in third spot and seven points adrift of leaders Celtic.
The wasteful hosts, who were booed off again, passed up a flurry of clear-cut chances to race into a lead before Stefan Gartenmann capitalised on poor defending to slide in his first Aberdeen goal from a Leighton Clarkson corner.
Gartenmann's opener appeared to rock Rangers, who fell two behind in the second half when Jamie McGrath drilled in shortly after Bojan Miovski headed off the left-hand post from close range.
Abdallah Sima's tap-in offered a brief lifeline to the home side, who had their woes compounded by former Pittodrie forward Scott Wright's dismissal, before Jack MacKenzie's rebounded effort in off the crossbar restored the visitors' two-goal lead late on.
Aberdeen's victory, the first at Ibrox by any Scottish side other than Celtic since March 2020, moves them up to seventh.
Had Cyriel Dessers converted two glorious early chances - one lofted over and another saved superbly by Kelle Roos - in addition to close-range headers from Sima and Jose Cifuentes, it might have been a comfortable Rangers win.
But a lack of clinical edge has been the script of the Ibrox club's season so far, as has cheap defending which was on show again when the home defence was caught sleeping for Gartenmann's opener.
That goal sucked belief out of Beale's men, who failed to clear from a flurry of Aberdeen efforts before McGrath rifled in following a stunning Jack Butland save.
And it was a similar story for MacKenzie's third as another outstanding Butland stop from Jonny Hayes counted for nothing, with the Aberdeen wing-back crashing in on the rebound via a kiss off the underside of the crossbar.
Player of the match - Graeme Shinnie (Aberdeen)
A colossal performance at the heart of the Aberdeen team from the captain, who demonstrated everything the Rangers midfield was lacking in a fantastic display
Can Beale survive latest defeat? - analysis
Given the reaction from the remaining Ibrox support at full time, there will now be questions about whether Beale can survive this latest defeat.
Previous Ibrox manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst exited while nine points behind Celtic after 15 games. Beale is currently seven adrift after seven.
The Rangers boss is currently hampered by injuries to key first-team regulars, but the fact that the absences of Kemar Roofe and Rabbi Matondo are seriously impacting his side probably highlights the failings in his summer recruitment.
In James Tavernier, Beale has the best chance creator in the league at his disposal, but his new-look attack continue to fail to make the most of the openings that fall their way. An xG of 2.71 compared to Aberdeen's 1.62 only emphasises this.
A lack of discipline from the hosts, which included two second-half bookings in the space of 16 minutes for Wright, also does not bode well for the under-pressure Rangers manager.
As for Aberdeen, Barry Robson appears to have found a formula that can stifle high-calibre opponents while getting the best out of his attack.
The starting line-up he named at Ibrox was the same one that started in Frankfurt last week, which was another hugely encouraging display despite defeat in Germany.
With back-to-back home games against St Johnstone and Dundee to come, the Pittodrie side can look to properly kick their domestic campaign into life.
What they said
Watch Beale's final interview as Rangers manager
Rangers manager Michael Beale: "It was a horrible result. We started the game well. We had three or four big chances to go in front, then we get caught on a set play we don't do well enough with.
"It's not good enough for me, the players or anyone at the club. Rightly, the criticism will be justified. We thought we had turned a corner. I haven't spoken to anyone [about my future]. Everyone realises where we are needs to be better."
Aberdeen manager Barry Robson: "We're really pleased with the three points to take us up the table. I won't get carried away, but I think we learned from the Eintracht Frankfurt game and we've grown since then.
"Structurally, we were good. Tactically, we got it right. We had to frustrate them for 20-25 minutes and we did that. Then we started picking passes at the right time. We're starting to get to where we want to be."
Aberdeen 'need to crack on' after Ibrox win - Barry Robson
What's next?
Both sides are in European action on Thursday, with Rangers travelling to Aris Limassol in the Europa League (17:45 BST) and Aberdeen hosting HJK Helsinki in the Conference League (20:00).