Dundee vs Rangers. Scottish Premiership.
The Scot Foam Stadium at Dens ParkAttendance8,970.
Report and free match highlights from the Scottish Premiership match between Dundee and Rangers at Dens Park as goals from Ryan Jack, Danilo, Sam Lammers, Cyriel Dessers and James Tavernier earned Philippe Clement a third win from his three league matches in charge of the Gers
Thursday 2 November 2023 14:32, UK
Rangers maintained their pressure on Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic with a resounding 5-0 win over Dundee on an incident-packed night at Dens Park.
Ryan Jack put the Gers in front with a simple finish within the first five minutes of a game that was first delayed by 45 minutes due to traffic issues in the surrounding area, before pyrotechnics set off by Rangers fans activated a fire alarm that saw proceedings paused for another 15.
The SPFL labelled the incident as "very concerning and unwelcome", while Police Scotland say taking the pyrotechnics into the ground was "not only an offence" but "extremely dangerous".
Five minutes into the second half, Danilo made it 2-0 with a composed finish, before Sam Lammers rattled in a third off the underside of the crossbar.
Substitute Cyriel Dessers increased the advantage with a controversial fourth, while James Tavernier put the icing on the cake with a late penalty, which was awarded after a VAR review following Lyall Cameron's foul on the Rangers captain.
Rangers maintain the five-point gap between themselves and Celtic after a third straight league win under new manager Philippe Clement. Dundee, meanwhile, drop down to ninth.
The night could hardly have got off to a more dramatic start for both teams.
The aforementioned traffic issues meant Rangers arrived at Dens Park just over 15 minutes before the scheduled kick-off time of 7.45pm. And, when it did get going, with less than five minutes of the first half played, the police advised referee Kevin Clancy to take the players off the pitch after Rangers fans' flares activated a fire alarm in the Bob Shankly Stand.
When the game did finally get back under way - another 15 minutes later at 8.52pm - Rangers showed no signs the delays had affected them and they took the lead when Danilo's shot was spilled by Trevor Carson into the path of Jack, who was presented with a simple finish at the back post.
Lammers could have made it two when he received a cut-back and quickly fired into the side-netting when it might have been wise to take a touch, while Danilo forced a great reaction save from Carson before losing out to the goalkeeper as the pair tangled for control of the loose ball.
Early in the second half, Danilo charged forward after a Dundee defender misjudged a bouncing ball and blazed over, but he made no mistake two minutes later with a ruthless finish after being fed by Abdallah Sima.
Rangers goalkeeper Jack Butland's toughest test came just before the hour when he parried Luke McCowan's shot that took a wicked deflection and then denied Amadou Bakayoko as he followed up.
Lammers, arguably, scored the pick of the bunch when he shifted the ball away from several players and rifled in off the underside of the crossbar and soon Dessers made it 4-0. His goal was not without controversy, though, as McCowan had lost the ball when the referee had backed into him, leading to a rapid - and successful - counter.
There was even time for one more. Referee Clancy went to the VAR monitor after Lyall Cameron had made contact with Tavernier in the box and pointed to the spot, from where he did what he does best to add the gloss in stoppage time.
Following the second delay in Dundee due to flares in the away end, an SPFL spokesperson said: "The extensive use of pyrotechnics at the match at Dens Park is very concerning and unwelcome.
"The disruption to the game is obviously extremely regrettable. We await the delegate report and will be liaising with Police Scotland on the incident."
Police Scotland Superintendent Iain Wales added: "The safety of the public and officers is our priority. Due to a number of pyrotechnics, including smoke bombs and flares being set off in the stands, the game was stopped. Players were removed from the pitch and returned a short time later.
"Taking pyrotechnics into a football stadium is not only an offence, it is extremely dangerous. It is tremendously disappointing and worrying that despite repeated warning about the risk, these are still brought to matches.
"Luckily there were no reports of any injuries, however the consequences could have been much worse. It's only a matter of time before someone is seriously injured.
"Although no arrests were made at the game, retrospective enquiries are being carried out. The investigation is ongoing and we are working closely with both clubs to identify those responsible. Anyone with information that may assist our enquiries should contact 101 quoting reference number 2815 of 2 November."
Dundee manager Tony Docherty speaking to Sky Sports:
"I can't be too hard on them. Up to this point, we've been really competitive. I was disappointed with the way the game went. I thought the delay affected both teams, but I just felt that, coming in at 1-0, we made a couple of changes to go and have a go and lost another goal early on, which was a defensive mistake.
"At 2-0, we had a real opportunity to score; if we score that and make it 2-1, then it's back on, it's competitive. I was just disappointed with the way the game came away from us a wee bit near the end. It's just important now what the reaction is. We've got a difficult game against Livington on Sunday and we'll make sure we're ready for that.
"I don't understand why there can't be a rule for that. He's impeded our player; the referee has actually fouled our player. Because of the player's reaction, they run through and score. It's one of the most bizarre goals I've ever seen and the explanation I got for it is even more bizarre.
"The fourth official told me that, unless he touches the ball, they can't then go to VAR and bring it back again. It's not the reason we got beaten tonight, but I just don't understand why there's not a law against that."
Rangers manager Philippe Clement speaking to Sky Sports:
"The ambition to score goals, the ambition to keep on going when we were leading the game and scoring five goals because there are not many games you play where you score five goals. We had some other chances where we could have scored more.
That's really positive that we created chances and I saw more and more that movements together are becoming more natural for the players and more players are stepping into the team. We understand what we want to do together. A clean sheet is also important. It's a very important part of football.
"I was concerned [about the delay] because I don't know the team well enough mentally. I spoke in the dressing room about that, that whatever happened, it could not stop us. We need to be focused in all circumstances. These weeks are an observation period. It's a test to see how people react individually and how the team reacts.
"They did a really great job in that way because they started bright though we were on the bus for so long and also after the second delay when we had to go in, we started brightly again. Those are things we need to take for the future."
Dundee are at home to Livingston in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday. Kick-off 2pm.
Rangers' attention turns to their Viaplay Cup semi-final against Hearts at Hampden Park on Sunday. Kick-off 3pm.
