An all-Glasgow clash of Celtic v Rangers is set for December 15th. The current holders Rangers earned themselves a place in the Scottish League Cup Final, as a double in the second half from Dessers and Bjarami was enough to see off the Steelmen.
After a run of substandard results, Manager Philippe Clement’s team relieved some pressure on his job as they saw off a gritty performance from Stewart Kettlewell’s Motherwell side.
With a total attendance of just over 37 thousand fans feelings on the current form and the state of the club were on full display as Rangers did not fill their full allocation at Hampden. A sign displayed by the Union Bears in the first half of the game stating ‘Park and Co. Time to Go”. A reference to the higher-ups in the club.
After falling nine points behind both Celtic and Aberdeen in the league following the defeat in Pittodrie midweek. Fans were quick to point the finger at the manager, demanding change but more importantly a response today.
For Motherwell, they went into this game in good form but missing key players. This gave teenage sensation Lennon Miller a chance to captain the side in a semi-final of a cup. A proud moment for the teenager and his family.
The Ibrox side dominated the first half in terms of possession and had plenty of opportunities to open the scoring with chances from Cerny who looked the most dangerous player on the park. Lawrence, Barron and Dessers all had chances too, the latter who probably should have had two to his name with a poor effort going wide and straight at the keeper. Despite having plenty of shots it was mostly tame efforts shot right at Motherwell stopper Oxborogh.
Despite poor ball retention and having very little of the ball, Motherwell broke the deadlock and opened the scoring from their first attempt on goal. In the 25th minute, Andy Halliday got on the end of a terrific cross floated into the box by Steve Seddon as he slotted the ball past Jack Butland. He opted not to celebrate his first goal for the Steelmen against his former side whom he made over 100 appearances.
The sound of boos from the Rangers fans and jubilation from Motherwell rung out around the National stadium as the whistle went to signify halftime.
The Gers were the first team out of the tunnel after the break as they looked to get themselves back into the tie. It didn’t take long for Rangers to respond as in the 49th minute Cyriel Dessers put his poor efforts from the first half aside as he confidently put the ball in the back of the net. This breaks his 8-game goalless streak, with his last goal coming in the last round of this tournament back on September 21st. Despite Motherwell having more of the ball in this half compared to the opening 45, Rangers continued knocking on the door with wingers Cerny and Bajrami causing all kinds of problems for Motherwell. In the 81st minute Man of the Match, Cerny played a superb pass through to Bajrami whose deflected shot fired the Gers into the lead for the first time in the game. Motherwell’s defence showed great resilience for most of the game today despite missing some key players in Captain Paul McGinn and Vice-Captain Stephen O’Donnell. However, Bajrami’s goal was enough to send the Ibrox side through to the final six weeks from today.
Winger Vaclav Cerny led an inspired performance today as for 90 minutes he caused problem after problem for the Steelmen. Despite general negative feelings around Rangers at the moment you have to say he has remained the one shining light for the fans. Regarding his current form, he downplayed it insisting the overall result was more important. He said:
“The most important thing is that today we got to the final and the fact I could help is always a good feeling.”.
Throughout the match, Rangers adopted a possession-driven game utilising their wingers and overlapping fullbacks playing constant balls into the box as well as plenty of shots from central midfielders outside the box. Motherwell for the duration of the match chose to sit in and play long balls over the Rangers back line to forwards as well as waiting for counter-attacking opportunities.
After the match, Motherwell Manager Stewart Kettlewell was complimentary of his players today. He said:
“We’ve had a good start to the season, so I’m not going to sit here and criticise the players because when you see them slumped to their knees at the end that wasn’t a disappointment, that was exhaustion. They poured so much in, and I can’t ask any more from them”
They now turn their attention back to the league where they currently sit in fifth place just three points off Rangers. They face St. Johnstone at home.
Rangers will be back in European action on Thursday when they travel to Greece to take on Olympiacos in what will prove to be quite a hostile atmosphere. To this a delighted Manager Philippe Clement said:
“It’s a nice place to go. It’s always hot there, because of the sun but also because of the fans.”
He also said:
“It’s a team with a lot of physical qualities and technical qualities, they’re attacking-minded. So, we need to play a really big game there to get points.”
Credit must be given to both sides in what was a cagey affair at the National Stadium today. Motherwell were solid in their shape and defensively despite being without some usual starting players and just fell short in the end. 18-year-old Lennon Miller did not look out of place as captain. Rangers answered critics and despite going in behind at the break they kept pushing for a much-needed win. They now give their players and fans a final to look forward to and a chance to win the first available silverware of the season.
Motherwell: Oxborough, Kaleta, (Blaney 75’), Casey, Gordon, Balmer, Seddon, (Sparrow 56’), Halliday, Miller ©, Wilson, Stamatelopoulos, (Tavares 63’), Maswanhise, (Robinson 63’),
Unused Substitutes: Hegyi (GK), Zdravovski, Koutroumbis, Ebiye, Watt.
Booked: Balmer, Seddon
Scorer: Halliday (25)
Rangers: Butland, Tavernier ©, (Sterling 67’), Souttar, Balogun, (Kasanwirjo 78’), Jefte, Raskin, Barron, Bajrami, Lawrence, (Diomande 36’), Cerny, Dessers, (Danilo 67’)
Unused Substitutes: Kelly (GK), Propper, Dowell, Igamane, Hagi
Booked: Cerny, Bajrami
Scorers: Dessers, Bajrami
Referee: Nick Walsh
VAR: Alan Muir
Attendance: 37,077