AN early first-half goal from Antonio Colak and James Tavernier helped Rangers to an impressive 4-0 victory against St Mirren at Ibrox this afternoon.
Another goal in the second half for Colak followed by a last-minute strike from Fashion Jr saw the Gers secure three key points at home in the Scottish Premiership.
From his squad that took to the pitch at Anfield on Tuesday night in the UEFA Champions League, the boss made five changes with Scott Arfield, Rabbi Matondo, Fashion Jr, Ryan Jack, and Antonio Colak coming into the starting XI.
That meant that Allan McGregor started between the posts with a backline of James Tavernier, Connor Goldson, Ben Davies, and Borna Barisic in front of him.
Arfield and Jack came back into the midfield alongside John Lundstrum, with Matondo, Fashion Jr, and Colak as the attacking three.
Rangers welcomed supporters back into a packed and chilly Ibrox this afternoon as the squad looked to take an important three points in the league following their challenging Champions League match midweek in Liverpool.
The Light Blues piled the pressure on from the first blow of the whistle as Matondo engineered the first opportunity of the match with less than a minute on the clock.
The Ger whipped in a threatening delivery into the visitors' box eager to meet the feet of Colak at the front post, but the ball was intercepted before the Croatian could make contact with his effort.
This early pressure certainly paid off as Rangers were ahead inside the third minute after superb build-up play in the St Mirren final third. Barisic carried the ball towards the opposition’s goal and found some space to send a ferocious strike, but his effort drifted slightly wide and agonisingly rattled off the post.
However, Colak was unsurprisingly amongst the action again and was on hand to fire the deflected ball straight past Trevor Carson to give his side the early advantage.
The squad built from this positive start and looked hungry to add to their tally in a fashionable manner. The attacking front three continued to create angst amongst the St Mirren backline with Jack and Arfield both encountering the ball inside the box, but their efforts steered wide of the goal.
Captain Tavernier floated in a dangerous strike from outside the box as it looked certain to reach the top corner, but Carson made an acrobatic dive to tip the skipper’s effort over the crossbar and deny the Light Blues their second.
Stephen Robinson’s side searched for a response to rectify the scoreline, but the defending four remained firm to intercept any potential threats.
As the clock approached the 30-minute mark, the referee pointed to the penalty spot after Declan Gallagher fouled Colak in the box.
With a calm demeanour as always, Tavernier stepped up to take the spot kick where he slotted his finish under the goalkeeper to give his side a key two-goal lead.
At the other end, St Mirren found a burst of energy in the final stages of the first half to break through the Rangers backline as they looked to close the deficit.
Mark O’Hara curled in a cross to meet the head of Marcus Fraser patiently waiting in the box, but McGregor was alert and read the danger to collect his effort.
Only five minutes had elapsed in the second half with the Gers almost securing their third of the match. Tavernier curled in a paced corner kick into a congested St Mirren box as Davies rose the highest in hopes to meet the delivery, but his effort just skimmed over the top of his head.
Matondo looked to cause issues for the defensive line as he fiercely pushed towards Carson between the posts. The Light Blue sent a rocketing strike from the edge of the box gliding towards the goal, but his strike bounced off the post and back into play.
Robinson's squad changed the flow of play and began to challenge McGregor in hopes to restore a goal. O’Hara found the ball at the back post and challenged the Gers keeper with a forceful strike, but McGregor blocked his effort to maintain their important lead.
Van Bronckhorst’s side quickly swung the game back towards Carson in the St Mirren goal as Fashion Jr made a phenomenal run from the halfway line into the final third area. The Zambian managed to pick out Colak advancing into the box and threaded a fantastic ball to the striker, where he took a deft first touch before slotting a low effort across the face of the goal and into the back of the net.
On the cusp of full time, Fashion Jr netted the fourth and final goal of the 90 minutes. Substitute Alfredo Morelos played a lovely through ball to the on-running striker into the box where he calmly slotted in into the bottom corner past Carson to end the score 4-0.
RANGERS: McGregor, Tavernier, Goldson, Davies (King, 62), Barisic (Ridvan, 77), Jack (Kamara, 81), Lundstrum, Arfield, Matondo (Kent, 62), Sakala, Colak (Morelos, 77).
UNUSED SUBS: McLaughlin, Sands, Wright, Tillman.
ST MIRREN: Carson, Gallagher, Gogic, Dunne, Fraser, Baccus, Erhahon, O’Hara, Tanser (Tait, 73), Main, Greive (Kiltie, 64).
UNUSED SUBS: Urminsky, Shaughnessy, Kenny, Flynn, Reid, Taylor, Henderson.
REFEREE: Nick Walsh
ASSISTANT REFEREE: Frank Connor and Craig Ferguson
FOURTH OFFICIAL: Chris Fordyce
ATTENDANCE: 49,274
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