Rangers blew away Aberdeen in the second half to end their record seven-match winless streak at Ibrox in style and leave interim boss Barry Ferguson "relieved" after his first home victory at the sixth attempt.

Vaclav Cerny, Cyriel Dessers and Hamza Igamane all produced fine finishes in a 15-minute spell as Aberdeen fell apart at the back.

Jefte got in on the act in the closing seconds, adding the fourth when Cerny's effort deflected in off the Brazilian.

It completed a rout as Aberdeen's attempt to close the three-point gap to Hibernian in the race for third place fell flat.

"I'm relieved," said Ferguson. "Seven games is far too much.

"There was a lot of pressure on us today and, certainly in the second half, we handled that.

"First half, we were a bit passive, pedestrian in our play. Aberdeen never threatened us but I wanted more and I demanded more.

"We changed tactically, I wanted more runners from midfield, and I thought we were really convincing. The only disappointing thing for me was not scoring a few more goals."

The Dons were left to rue an effort from Topi Keskinen that came back off a post shortly after the interval at 0-0.

It was their last meaningful moment as they were soon two goals behind, with Rangers midfielder Nicolas Raskin key to both.

First he sent Cerny through a huge gap in the Dons defence for the Czech winger to claim his 18th goal of an impressive season.

The Belgian then showed skill and composure in the opposing box to lay the ball on a plate for Dessers to stab home his 26th of another prolific campaign.

The icing on the home cake was a fabulous volley from substitute Igamane, following some more abysmal Aberdeen defending, to put the game beyond any doubt with 20 minutes left.

The second period had everything the first half lacked. Passion, quality and goals.

The play before the interval was notable only for three things. Goals at either end disallowed for offside by the video assistant referee to the frustration of Dessers as well as Aberdeen's Oday Dabbagh - and an absolute sitter spurned by the Rangers striker.

His profligacy was quickly forgotten, however, after his side's clinical display in the second 45 which ended the three-month wait for a home victory at Ibrox.

Given Rangers came into this one on the back of an unprecedented seven-match winless streak at Ibrox, you would have thought they'd have been busting a gut to put that right.

It didn't look much like it for long periods of the first half. The apathy symbolised by the plethora of empty seats appeared to be mirrored in the attitude and energy of the home players.

That all changed in a much-improved performance after the break, helped a great deal by some terrible Aberdeen defending.

Ferguson wanted his men to show pride, and quality in the final third. He got both, eventually, and is entitled to enjoy his first home win as Rangers manager. Whether he's around to enjoy many more will soon be decided at boardroom level.

Pre-match, manager Jimmy Thelin said it was important his players showed "presence" and bravery on the ball. They didn't do that nearly well enough.

As to some of their defending after the interval, the Swede will be scratching his head. He'll also be worrying, given he has two matches against champions Celtic in the next 10 days, one of which is the Scottish Cup final.

The first-half performance was acceptable. The second was not. To concede four goals and watch goalkeeper Dimitar Mitov still have to make save after save will give Thelin plenty of foot for thought as he heads into the crucial final period of the season.

Rangers interim manager Barry Ferguson: "We are all frustrated at how this season has gone but we are thankful we got the win today.

"I was delighted with the commitment and attitude in the Celtic game last week. Same again today. I just want to see better quality from middle to front.

"We didn't bring it in the first half but in the second half we looked a threat every time we entered their box.

"Decisions need to be made pretty soon [on the next manager] but me, my staff and the players will remain as professional as possible to make sure we finish off the season strongly."

Aberdeen manager Jimmy Thelin: "We have to show more of ourselves.

"The first half we were quite good defensively but did not have so many threats. The second half we started better and created some chances. After their first goal we stopped doing things as a team.

"We have to manage games better in these important games. The standard performance-wise was not good enough. We have to find a way to turn this around."