Dundee United vs Rangers. Scottish Premiership.
CalForth Construction Arena at Tannadice ParkAttendance14,268.
Report and free highlights as Tom Lawrence scored within seven minutes to ultimately seal victory for Rangers; Dundee United - who were ahead of Rangers in the table before the game - failed to register a shot on target; Rangers go above their opponents in the Scottish Premiership table
Sunday 15 September 2024 21:36, UK
Tom Lawrence's early strike was enough for Rangers to beat Dundee United 1-0 in the Scottish Premiership, leapfrogging their opponents into third place.
Philippe Clement and his side were under pressure to show a reaction after losing 3-0 to Old Firm rivals Celtic before the international break - and there was an immediate reply.
A fine solo run from Lawrence - set up after a neat touch from Cyriel Dessers - allowed him to slot past Jack Walton inside seven minutes.
Rangers continued to pepper the Dundee United area, but there was a somewhat controversial end to the first half. Emmanuel Adegboyega made a forceful challenge on Connor Barron, catching his foot, but only received a yellow card.
VAR did review the on-field decision, but stuck with referee Don Robertson's decision. It was perhaps not a surprise that Adegboyega was replaced at half-time, with Rangers also handing a debut to Deadline Day signing Nedim Bajrami.
United were improved in the second half - although failed to register any shots on target in the game - and could have equalised in the 55th minute. However, Kristijan Trapanovski's shot deflected wide.
Lawrence twice went close again, but it was his early goal that decided proceedings at Tannadice. It sends Rangers above Dundee United, although they remain five points behind Celtic. Jim Goodwin's side slip down into fourth and have lost their first Scottish Premiership game of the season.
Rangers manager Philippe Clement to Sky Sports: "[Pleased] to win here, because it's a team in a really good dynamic. They got the points they deserve and they've done really well, so it's a hard place to come to.
"We are integrating a lot of new players. Some are here a few weeks and they're getting better and better. Some are coming out of long-term injury and some are brand new.
"There are a lot of new things. We still make more mistakes than we will make in one or two years with this squad, but it's getting better and that's what people see."
"There's so much we can improve and that's normal with the squad where you change 16 players and 11 new ones come in. It will be a lot of work, but I love work. I don't like a boring life."
Dundee United manager Jim Goodwin to Sky Sports: "We're disappointed to end our unbeaten run. I don't think we can have too many complaints about the end result.
"Rangers definitely created the more clear-cut chances, albeit the actual goal they scored was a very disappointing one from our perspective.
"After that, we had to change the shape, it wasn't working at the beginning. Once we went to a 4-3-3, I thought we were a lot better.
"In the second half, we were really good. We had Rangers penned back for large periods, but with all of the better possession we had, we didn't really create anything.
"We can't be too hard on the players. They put a hell of a lot into the game, but real frustration that we haven't been able to take anything from it."
Sky Sports' Kris Boyd at Tannadice: "Rangers could easily go between now and January 2 and not lose another game in Scotland. But the reality is, when they go up against Celtic, they are behind them at the moment.
"With the way Celtic have started the season and gone about their business in recent years, Rangers are striving to get to that level.
"They had an opportunity last year and fell short. This year, it looks like Rangers have gone the other way and Celtic have improved.
"The competition in Scotland won't give Rangers much of a problem. I do think they'll finish second comfortably, but the benchmark is Celtic and they have to get back towards that."
Chris Sutton on Sky Sports at Tannadice: "Clement is still striving to find his best starting XI. In the forward areas, it's about understanding combination play and connecting.
"While the first goal was a good example on the same wavelength in Dessers and Lawrence, when you make changes and bring on the subs, it will take time.
"It'll be interesting to see where Rangers are in a couple of months' time because that's when I do think it's really fair to judge him.
"Do I see their midfield trio control games like Celtic control games? No I don't and that's a problem. But I do think we'll see a gradual improvement that is natural and that's what Clement is banking on.
"Today was all about the result... it's about building and small steps so fair play to him today."
