AN excellent attacking display by Rangers saw them collect all three points in the Scottish Premiership today with a 4-0 defeat of Ross County.
Antonio Colak grabbed a double while John Lundstram and Steven Davis were also on target in the rout which saw Gers really only denied a whole lot more goals by County keeper Ross Laidlaw.
Manager van Bronckhorst named one change to his side for this afternoon’s Scottish Premiership visit of Ross County to Ibrox.
From the team which so famously made it through to the Champions League by beating PSV in Eindhoven on Wednesday night, in came Scott Wright in place of Glen Kamara.
That meant it was the same back five of Jon McLaughlin in goal with James Tavernier, Connor Goldson, James Sands and Borna Barisic in front of him.
Lundstrum joined Tom Lawrence in the middle of the park, while Wright, Malik Tillman and Ryan Kent played in support of Colak.
Clearly still on a high from their midweek win in the Netherlands, Gers began with plenty of energy, and Kent came close with a curling effort from 25-yards which only narrowly cleared goalkeeper Laidlaw’s far post.
Goldson then brought the ball out from defence and kept his run going to get on the end of a Tavernier cross into the box, but Laidlaw denied him from point-blank range.
Lawrence then had an effort from inside the ‘D’ deflected wide, while Barisic also fired wide from the edge of the box when he got on the end of a cleared ball.
Laidlaw made another super save from Tillman when he was fed by Kent to shoot from eight yards, and then again seconds later with a bouncing effort from the American that he clawed away.
It was wave after wave from Gers, and they finally hit the front on 24 minutes. Kent played one inside for Lundstrum to hit from 25-yards, and his quality strike flew past Laidlaw and nestled in the inside of the side netting.
It was no more than Gers deserved for all of their attacking endeavour, and they continued to flood forward in search of that second as the half progressed.
Kent was next to again come close, shooting over from just inside the area, while Colak was denied by a cluster of County bodies when set up by Lawrence on the end of a fine run from him into the area.
But the big Croatian wasn’t to be denied his sixth goal in nine appearances with a brilliant finish on the fall into the far corner on the end of a Wright ball.
Tavernier had time to rattle the crossbar at the back post with a header on the end of a Barisic ball, but 2-0 is how the teams were to go in at the interval.
The second half began with the same one way traffic, with Ben Purrington making a fine block on the line to deny Kent once more on the afternoon before Colak grabbed his second on 58 min on the end of a stunning move.
Lawrence and Kent combined superbly on the edge of the area before Kent clipped a lovely ball onto the penalty spot for Colak to blast past Laidlaw.
Laidlaw then had to save well from a deflected Lawrence effort – doing well to push the ball out of the path of the incoming Colak, before the goalkeeper denied Colak soon after from close range.
Lawrence was next up to chest a clipped Tavernier ball to the back post wide, while Goldson was searching again for a goal with a 30-yarder that wasn’t too far away.
Goal number four did arrive, however, on 80 minutes. Tavernier’s cross from the right was flicked behind him by Lawrence, and coming onto it for his first of the season was sub Steven Davis after a super run into the area.
Scott Arfield should have made it five late on when put in on goal, but his chip was gathered out of the air by the goalkeeper.
RANGERS: McLaughlin, Tavernier, Lundstram, Goldson, Colak (Davis, 73), Lawrence, Kent (Matondo, 62), Sands (King, 45), Wright, Barisic, Tillman (Arfield, 62)
SUBS: McGregor, Ridvan, Jack, Fashion Jr, Devine.
ROSS COUNTY: Laidlaw, Purrington, Cancola, Iacovitti, Dhanda (Sims, 77), Johnston, Loturi (Tillson, 45) Watson, Harmon (Edwards-Owura, 55), Olaigbe (White, 84), Hiwula (White, 77)
SUBS: Eastwood, Samuel, Munro, Paton.
REFEREE: Don Robertson
ATTENDANCE: 48,899
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