DUNFERMLINE felt the full force of Rangers striking power at Ibrox as Tore Andre Flo and Shota Arveladze maintained their remarkable scoring ratio with a double each in a runaway victory.
The only down side was that fellow striker Claudio Caniggia did not get in on the act. He might have had a hat-trick but spurned three good chances. However it mattered little.
It is likely that one of the last things Jimmy Calderwood said to his side before kick-off was to ensure that Rangers did not score an early goal. There were, however, barely five minutes on the clock when his worst fears were realised.
That said there was a considerable degree of fortune about Shota Arveladze’s strike which gave the Ibrox men the ideal start.
Claudio Caniggia’s cross from the right struck Jason Dair and then rebounded back off Arveladze into the Dunfermline net. It was stroke of luck but Shota was not complaining as he celebrated in front of the Broomloan Stand.
For the next 20 minutes Rangers bombarded the Fifers, who scarcely got a touch of the ball. Crucially, the Light Blues could not make their pressure count and the finished the first half having to defend against a heartened Dunfermline side.
They did, however, end any speculation about the outcome when Tore Andre Flo struck twice and Arveladze scored his second inside the first 13 minutes of the second half.
Rangers were totally dominant in the opening moments and the Fifers were lucky to survive the onslaught. The front three were at their best while Reyna and Ferguson ran the show in midfield.
Arveladze tested Marco Ruitenbeek with a deflected drive in eight minutes then Fernando Ricksen cut inside onto his left foot on 13 minutes to try his luck but again the Dutch keeper made a smart save.
Caniggia really should have settled the issue in 20 minutes when he was presented with a superb opportunity. Arthur Numan picked him out with a cute pass which caught the Fifers flat-footed and the Argentinian seemed certain to score.
Surprisingly for a man of his experience, Caniggia mis-hit his shot and a relieved Ruitenbeek was able to make a comfortable save when he must have thought he would be pulling the ball out of the net.
Flo fired a right shot just over the top in 24 minutes then Arveladze headed Caniggia’s cross wide a minute later as Dunfermline were sliced open once again.
However, the fact that they had not added to their lead was highlighted in 30 minutes when former Ranger Barry Nicholson almost snatched a shock equaliser which would have undoubtedly caused some disquiet on the Rangers bench.
It was Dair who created the chance with a whipped cross from the left, Nicholson flicked a right foot shot and Stefan Klos made a brilliant blocking save diving to his right. The ball broke back to Nicholson but he shot wide.
It was a let-off and the incident was not doubt mentioned at half-time. Whatever was said, it certainly worked because Rangers blew Dunfermline away with three goals in the first 13 minutes of the second half.
Flo had played well in the first half and he added goals to his play to put the finishing touches to his excellent performance and stretch his remarkable goals tally.
The Norwegian’s critics say he is not strong enough but he showed tremendous power to hold off Andrius Skerla as he latched onto Reyna’s pass in 50 minutes to steer a left foot shot into the net.
Then in 54 minutes Flo displayed his predatory instinct to the full. Caniggia’s corner from the right was headed down by Amoruso at the back post and Flo stabbed a right foot shot home from close range.
Dunfermline were floored but Rangers were not finished and Arveladze scored his second of the day in 58 minutes to make it six goals in six games.
It was Ricksen who set up the chance with a perfectly weighted diagonal ball from the right. Shota caught it on the volley and Ruitenbeek made a great block but the former Ajax man followed up to fire the rebound into the net.
The scoreline could have been anything after this and Caniggia missed two more excellent chances while substitute Peter Lovenkrands blew a couple too, but the result was more than acceptable to Dick Advocaat who left after 62 minutes to head for Paris to check on UEFA Cup opponents PSG.
He missed the dismissal of Youssef Rossi who was red-carded for a last-man challenge on Caniggia in 79 minutes after being booked 16 minutes earlier but Dunfermline were already dead and buried by then.
It was Rangers eighth straight win and undoubtedly sets them up nicely for the crucial matches with the French side and Celtic next week.
RANGERS: Klos; Amouroso, Konterman, Ball; Ricksen, Reyna, Ferguson, Numan; Caniggia, Flo (Lovenkrands 70), Arveladze. Subs not used – Christiansen, de Boer, Latapy, Ross.
Bookings: None.
DUNFERMLINE: Ruitenbeek; Skinner, Skerla, Rossi; Bullen, Mason, Nicholson (Nish 77), Ferguson (Hampshire 59), Dair (Petrie 65); Thomson, Crawford. Subs not used – Thomson (GK), McLeish.
Sent off: Rossi (79)
Bookings: Bullen (79), Nish (88)
Ref: John Underhill.
Att: 48,554.
Man of the match: Tore Andre Flo
Moment of the match: Flo’s show of strength to hold off Skerla for the first goal.