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Rangers fight to see Motherwell and set final cup date with Celtic

Pabio November 4, 2024

Rangers fought back from a goal down to beat Motherwell 2-1 at Hampden and reach the Premier Sports Cup final.

Coach Philippe Clement, under fire, led his team to the final against Celtic, where they will attempt to successfully defend the trophy won at the national stadium last year.

Cyriel Dessers and Nedim Bajrami scored the vital goals after Andy Halliday gave Motherwell the lead, easing the pressure on the manager and team following their midweek defeat to Aberdeen.

Rangers dominated early but failed to find a path to goal and they were stunned when Motherwell did just that in a rare foray onto the pitch in the 27th minute.

Steve Seddon ran down the left flank and had time to deliver a deep cross. Halliday had made a breathtaking run to get into the box and he met the cross to push the ball past Jack Butland and into the net. The former Ibrox man didn’t celebrate extravagantly, but the Motherwell fans were happy to take the lead against the run of play.

Rangers looked rattled but immediately pushed forward, with Tom Lawrence trying his luck from distance, but the creative midfielder was soon forced off the field due to injury and was replaced by Mohamed Diomande.

Just before halftime, Dessers had a golden opportunity to draw Rangers level. Diomande’s shot was spotted by Aston Oxborough and Dessers was perfectly placed to tap in the rebound but shot wide of the post.

Rangers fans made their displeasure known at the half-time whistle and Clement’s side needed an answer. They found him four minutes after the restart.

Connor Barron carried the ball into the penalty area then slipped it to Dessers who made no mistake this time, placing his goal inside the post to make it 1-1.

Rangers were at the forefront again and James Tavernier put his chance over the bar just after the hour mark.

Vaclav Cerny then had two good chances to take the lead as Motherwell were pushed further back.

With ten minutes to go, Rangers found the goal they needed. Cerny, who was a constant thorn in Motherwell’s side, cut inside from the right side and picked out Bajrami. The striker’s shot deflected off Kofi Balmer, rounded Oxborough and bounced over the line to make it 2-1.

Motherwell threw themselves forward in search of an equalizer, but Rangers kept their cool and took advantage of the remaining time and six minutes of stoppage time to secure their progression to the final.

After a difficult start to the season, they will now face their rivals in December with the first trophy of the season on the line.