Glasgow Rangers secured their place in the last four of the League Cup with an impressive 3-0 win over their city rivals at Ibrox on Sunday afternoon.
The Light Blues have now kept clean sheets in four of their last five matches in all competitions, but Ivor Pandur had very little to do between the sticks against Celtic.
It was then the team’s play in possession that allowed Derek McInnes‘ side to go and win the match, as Dan Neil scored twice either side of a first Rangers goal from Kevin Kelsy.
In the absence of Lawrence Shankland, who is out for up to four months with a hamstring injury, Neil donned the captain’s armband and delivered a captain’s performance.
How Dan Neil dominated Celtic for Rangers
The English midfielder, who joined on a free transfer from Sunderland over the summer, scored the first and third goals for the Light Blues, and both came from positions on the edge of the box.
Neil was perfectly positioned to slot into the bottom left corner for the first goal before he curled his second goal into the far top corner with a sublime finish to make it 3-0.
It was his positioning throughout the game that allowed him to get the better of Callum McGregor and Mika Baur in the midfield, as he picked up positions to keep hold of the ball and retain control for his side.
The Gers skipper dominated the Hoops because of how he was able to avoid duels and challenges with his clever movement off the ball to take on passes from his teammates.
|
26/27 Premiership |
Dan Neil |
|---|---|
|
Appearances |
4 |
|
Pass accuracy |
85% |
|
Tackles per game |
2.5 |
|
Interceptions per game |
1.5 |
|
Duels won per game |
4.3 |
|
Ground duel success rate |
52% |
|
Aerial duel success rate |
50% |
He has shown that he can handle himself in duels in the Scottish Premiership, though, by winning the majority of his duels across his first four outings in the division.
Better than Neil: Rangers have found their best signing since Igamane
Neil has hit the ground running at Ibrox and is starting to look like one of the club’s best signings since Hamza Igamane, whom the club made a significant profit on after spending just the 2024/25 campaign in Glasgow.
However, the English midfielder is not even the best player to have been signed by the Gers this summer, because one of the club’s other signings outperformed him against Celtic.
Rangers banked £8.7m profit on Igamane after he scored 16 goals in his debut season with the Scottish giants, and Olwethu Makhanya could be sold for a similar profit if he keeps his form up.
The South Africa international delivered an incredibly dominant and impressive performance in multiple positions in the 3-0 win for the Light Blues against Celtic on Sunday.
In his post-match press conference, McInnes described the defender’s display as “sensational” and “first class” after he had to play on the left side of a back three in the first half and at right-back towards the end of the match.
Makhanya showed incredible versatility, composure, strength, and quality on the ball throughout the 3-0 win over Celtic, impressing in both of the positions that he was asked to play.
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Rating Rangers starters vs Celtic |
|
|---|---|
|
Player |
Rating |
|
Ivor Pandur |
7 |
|
Dujon Sterling |
7 |
|
Emmanuel Fernandez |
7 |
|
Olwethu Makhanya |
9 |
|
James Penrice |
8 |
|
Nico Raskin |
7 |
|
Dan Neil |
8.5 |
|
Min-su Kim |
7 |
|
Ryan Naderi |
8 |
|
Djeidi Gassama |
7 |
|
Kevin Kelsy |
8 |
Signed from Philadelphia Union for £3m in the summer, the 22-year-old centre-back is fast becoming the club’s best signing since Igamane after a 9/10 performance on Sunday.
Makhanya set the tempo for Rangers with his aggressive defending from the off, pressing high to win the ball and break up play high up the pitch to prevent the away side from creating any notable chances.
He was even better than Neil, despite the two goals, because it was his complete dominance defensively that provided the rest of the team with a platform to build from.
Makhanya has started all five of his appearances in the Premiership since signing for the Gers, and has won 53% of his ground duels and 54% of his aerial battles, whilst averaging 2.0 tackles and interceptions per game.
Rangers have already kept five clean sheets this season with the South African colossus at the heart of the defence, and it is no coincidence that the team have improved defensively with him in the team.
Makhanya has hit the ground running at Ibrox and did not take any time to adapt to the physicality and intensity of Scottish football, showing incredible composure and strength week-in-week-out.
If he continues to deliver dominant defensive performances and shows quality with the ball at his feet, he could end up being the club’s best signing since Igamane, and could attract interest from elsewhere.