It is difficult to get away from the analogy of two bald men fighting over a comb when it comes to Celtic, Rangers and this curious Scottish season. A day after Celtic lumbered past Aberdeen, Rangers were only marginally more impressive when seeing off Heart of Midlothian.
A team with more punch and vigour than that managed by Steven Naismith would have increased the sense of panic around Ibrox. Instead, Rangers know that regardless of what happens over the closing weeks of the Premiership season they will have the chance to have the last word of 2023-24 when the Old Firm meet at Hampden Park in the Scottish Cup final on 25 May.
Philippe Clement entered this game with an ominous record of two wins in eight Rangers matches. League points were dropped at Ross County and Dundee within a matter of days. Yet Hearts always looked favourable opposition. The Edinburgh club have never defeated Rangers at Hampden, with their recent record in this fixture in all arenas equally woeful.
Clement reserved post-match praise for Cyriel Dessers, the match-winner. The Belgian has been widely criticised despite 19 goals during his maiden season in Scotland. That Kemar Roofe started in attack in Dundee in midweek suggested Clement’s patience with Dessers had run out.
“People see these things totally wrongly,” said the Rangers manager. “Cyriel has played a lot of minutes. Cyriel was fresh today and could show his quality more. He works really hard for the team and is honest, with or without goals.” Rangers are unclear over the extent of Abdallah Sima’s injury after the Brighton loanee limped off after just 15 minutes of this semi-final. Sima would ordinarily be a key player as Rangers pursue silverware.
Rangers were already ahead by the time of Sima’s removal. Kye Rowles and Nathaniel Atkinson should both have halted Dessers but the forward was allowed to stride inside and fire the ball beyond Craig Gordon. Hearts grew into the opening half – during which Rangers actually offered very little – but their final ball was routinely poor.
Naismith later bemoaned “immaturity” in the last third. Ellis Simms, once potent in maroon and white, was lighting up Wembley as his former teammates laboured in Glasgow. “I had real belief we could win it,” said the Hearts manager. For whatever reason, this did not transmit to his players. It was striking how much more forceful Aberdeen, miles adrift of Hearts in the league, were against the other half of the Old Firm on Saturday.
To back up Naismith’s point, Kenneth Vargas should twice have punished Rangers in the second period but fluffed his lines. Yutaro Oda watched a shot deflected wide of the Rangers goal. Lawrence Shankland, prolific for Hearts in this campaign, was peripheral, save a header which found only the side netting.
With Rangers jittery, Dessers stepped up. Gordon saved the 29-year-old’s first effort but Dessers was unbowed, his second shot rolling into an unguarded net. The difference provided by a £4m striker was therefore summed up.
The response of the Rangers support – a hitherto anxious Rangers support – involved another hearty rendition of ‘The Billy Boys’, a song suitably sectarian in nature for Uefa to take action against the club almost two decades ago. The verse temporarily vanished from the Ibrox songbook due to the risk of sanction. Nobody in Scottish football officialdom has ever bothered to follow suit, hence this embarrassment – including on showpiece occasions – continues.
It will be even worse back here next month which would, in ordinary circumstances, prompt the Scottish FA to ponder their approach. Instead, fingers remain in ears. Those who allow this to linger are worthy of as much criticism as the punters who indulge in verse befitting the 17th century.
Fabio Silva fell over the ball rather than adding a third for Rangers. In their own little world, Celtic and Rangers are competitive. Anyone taking a keen interest in the bigger picture must raise questions about how standards have fallen.
