Rangers

Jamie Currie
Fan writer

On a day that was about the debut of Andreas Skov Olsen, it was the captain who sent Rangers on their way to a nervy three points against Dundee.

Given what was unfolding at Tynecastle, it was important Rangers picked up the win. And while it never felt like a 3-0 game, you take that all day long.

First half was very stuffy and I felt Rangers were a bit safe in the final third, but we started the second with a purpose, and kudos to James Tavernier.

He stepped up and the tension within the stadium evaporated - grabbing his 100th league goal is remarkable. People forget this guy is a right-back.

By the time Danilo and Gassama scored the second and third, the stadium was a tad happy.

While there were nervy vibes at 1-0, Dundee never had a shot on target in the second half. And I have to give Jayden Meghoma a mention as Cam Congreve has proven to be a good player this season, and the Brentford loanee snuffed him out.

Right now is about winning, performances can wait. Heading into Thursday against Porto, I'd be playing guys who need the game time: Oliver Antman, Findlay Curtis, Bojan Miovski and others.

Most of the starters should be kept for Sunday as that's clearly more important.

On the topic of a title race, my thoughts are the same: win the next game and don't get distracted until the last five. Getting too high about things and losing focus can cause all sorts of issues.

That's eight wins in a row in all competitions for Danny Rohl, winning the next two games look unlikely, but Sunday at Easter Road is the one.

Let's see how that goes, then hopefully we will have a strong end to the window.

Of course, there is a feelgood factor about Rangers just now, and it's important to see the progress under Rohl, but this team can throw in a clanger of a result and that has to be avoided against Hibernian.

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Rangers have bid 3m euros for striker Ryan Naderi, who plays for German third-division side Hansa Rostock. (Florian Plettenberg on X), external

The Ibrox club are in talks to sign Naderi, 22. (STV), external

Academy player Kyle Glasgow, 16, is expected to agree professional terms with Rangers following Premier League interest. (Herald - subscription required), external

Rangers have received a £2m offer from Pafos for forward Danilo, 26. (Sun), external

Meanwhile, Dutch club NEC see Danilo as a potential replacement for Kento Shiogai, who recently joined Wolfsburg. (Gelderlander - in Dutch), external

Monaco are interested in a loan with obligation to buy deal for Rangers winger Djeidi Gassama, 22. (Foot Mercato - in French), external

Rangers have rejected Monaco's offer for Gassama. (Record), external

Former Rangers head coach and Scotland defender Russell Martin is among the candidates to take over as Leicester City manager following the sacking of Marti Cifuentes. (Football Insider), external

Tuesday's Scottish gossip

Jonathan Sutherland
Sportscene presenter

James Tavernier notched up his 100th league goal for Rangers in their 3-0 win against Dundee which is absolutely phenomenal for a right-back.

The fact he is Rangers' top scorer in the Premiership this season is as impressive as it is telling in terms of the contribution of the strikers at the club this season.

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Rangers captain James Tavernier says they cannot rest on their laurels in their hunt for the Scottish Premiership title.

Tavernier scored his 100th league goal for the club in Sunday's 3-0 win over Dundee, a result which took the Ibrox outfit to within four points of league leaders Hearts, who drew 2-2 with Celtic.

Rangers were 13 points adrift when Danny Rohl took over as head coach from Russell Martin in October, but have won their past eight matches under the German to bring themselves firmly into contention.

Tavernier says they will not let up in their hunt of silverware.

"It was obviously early days in the league and it's a long season," he said.

"You've always got to back yourselves no matter what, doing that by winning games.

"I said earlier in the season that we have to have that consistency and I believe we've started that and really shown our potential and it just has to continue.

"We've been in this position before in January where we've been ahead and then let it slip, so we can't afford that.

"It's my responsibility and the senior lads to keep everyone on their toes and really focus on what we need to do.

"You can tell that the confidence is growing.

"The start of the season was obviously not what we expected, but it's a credit to everyone who's been involved in the turnaround, the mentality of everyone to really knuckle down and look in the mirror and focus on ourselves and get the wins we need.

"Sometimes it's not been pretty and to win games and be in contention for titles you always have to find a way to win. I think we are doing that well.

"We obviously want the games to look more comfortable, but we're finding ways to win and the best thing is that we're keeping clean sheets as well. We just need to continue this hard work.

"If we keep doing what we've been showing, there's every chance of [winning the league], but it has to be consistent, we have to keep doing it week in, week out.

"We have the Porto game [on Thursday] and then it's obviously a tough game against Hibs, so we have got to get three points there."

Watch Sportscene pundits Andy Halliday and Scott Allan discuss James Tavernier's penalty for Rangers in Sunday's 3-0 win over Dundee, marking his 100th goal for Rangers.

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Scott Allan believes head coach Danny Rohl has given Rangers better "foundations" since his October appointment.

However, the former Dundee, Hibernian and Celtic player feels the Ibrox side need an upgraded striker to clinch the title in May.

Rangers made it eight wins in a row in all competitions with a 3-0 victory at home to Dundee on Sunday, a sixth straight Scottish Premiership triumph.

The win moves Rohl's men up to second in the league, four points below Hearts and two points above Celtic.

"Rangers, I expected to beat Dundee," he told the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.

"The momentum they're building, the players coming in who I think will make a difference to the starting XI, and I think there'll be more on the way.

"The clean sheets Rangers are getting is a big plus in their favour for me because I think foundations are looking a lot better, especially from what we've seen earlier on in season, how vulnerable they were under Russell Martin.

"That's a good starting point this January for Rangers. What's the quality like coming in on top of that? I still think they need a better striker to really go and win the league."

Captain James Tavernier's penalty in Rangers' 3-0 win over Dundee on Sunday was his 100th league goal for the Ibrox club.

Watch as BBC Scotland takes a look back to see how the right-back has reached that milestone for the Govan side.

We asked for your views on Rangers' 3-0 win at home to Dundee, which narrowed the gap at the top of the Scottish Premiership.

Here's what some of you said:

Sally: Another striker badly needed. A chance of winning the league may well depend on one being sourced. Danny Rohl has to be applauded for dragging this team to where they are in the league table. Emmanuel Fernandez and Nasser Djiga are forming a good partnership and with time could be the go-to partnership. Playing the ball faster suits this team but passes need to be sharpened.

Robert: Worst game for a while but still won, it's a good sign. A prolific striker and we win this league, it's that simple. Can see the team are bonding and fighting as a group now. Manager has worked a miracle with the squad.

Calum: Feels like this is such a big result. A hard few weeks ahead for us though, Hibs away, Hearts at home. Motherwell away and Celtic at home too, and that's without mentioning one or two other fixtures. Come out of this next month and a bit with near enough maximum points, and it definitely looks very good for Rangers. But time will tell, as it so often has for us.

Steven: This team still has a lot of convincing to do. While the three points are welcome and necessary, there is no real flow to our game and a real lack of a clinical edge. We're dominating the ball and doing little or nothing with it at times. Today's scoreline flattered the performance. Early days for the new recruits, but judgement will come pretty quickly for them if they don't improve the team's performance level.

Dee: With Russell Martin in charge, I had totally written off Rohl's first season as a bedding-in period. We are still miles off what I expect from a Rangers team, but we are getting results and moving forward. Hearts are playing great football, and Celtic after Martin O'Neill's reintroduction will fight for everything. But could we actually pull off the the biggest turnaround in SPFL history? It's in our hands.

Watch highlights as James Tavernier's 100th league goal for Rangers helps Danny Rohl's side narrow the gap at the top with a Scottish Premiership win over Dundee.

MATCH REPORT: Rangers 3-0 Dundee

Borna Barisic says he should have left Rangers following their 2022 Europa League defeat but stayed on because of his love for the club. (Herald - subscription required), external

An issue with VAR caused the kick-off of Rangers' Sunday win over Dundee to be delayed by six minutes.

Monday's Scottish gossip

James Tavernier scored his 100th league goal for Rangers as they beat Dundee to overtake Celtic and move within four points of Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts.

Match report

Have your say

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Rangers head coach Danny Rohl: "It was a big, big win. Not an easy one, exactly what we expected. It was a good start in the second half. We were clinical at the end.

"You felt that in the stadium after the whistle the stands are full now. Big, big positive energy. It feels great with eight wins [in a row in all competitions]. We need these wins. We have 15 games to go, still a long way.

"A solid performance [from Tochi Chukwuani and Andreas Skov Olsen]. It's always new when you come in, you have to find your rhythm, you have to find your spaces, your team-mates around you have to understand you more. It's a normal first game but I'm happy to collect some minutes for them.

"Danilo scored, this is great. [Djeidi] Gassama scored. All the subs tried and helped the team. It was again a great team performance.

"I spoke about being hunter and this is still where we are. We want to hunt. We want to be on front foot. We want to win our games. If you do this, then in the next 15 games there is a big opportunity there. It's still hard work to do. It's not easy to win games in this league. If you hunt, you can be successful."

On the end of the transfer window, Rohl said: "Let's see what's in the market. The last, final week is coming. We have to make good decisions.

"It's possible. It's about timing. It's like dominoes. You have to wait sometimes, but if it's on and if there's a great opportunity then we will try looking for more players to strengthen the squad."

Ipswich Town have leapt to the head of the queue for Rangers target Dan Neil, with West Ham United also interested in the 24-year-old Sunderland midfielder. (Daily Record), external

Rangers will have to splash out upwards of £4m if they want to sign in-form 23-year-old Motherwell forward Tawanda Maswanhise this month. (Football Insider), external

There is still interest from Glasgow in 22-year-old Dunajska Streda forward Damir Redzic, with Rangers, Celtic, RB Salzburg, Copenhagen and Olympiacos among interested clubs. (Daily Record), external

Read Sunday's Scottish Gossip in full.

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Full-back Max Aarons believes Rangers can "do something special" this season under Danny Rohl.

The Ibrox side are rejuvenated since the German picked up the pieces from Russell Martin's calamitous reign, with the 1-0 Europa League win over Ludogorets making it seven straight victories in all competitions.

A 13-point deficit on Premiership leaders Hearts has been trimmed to six points before Dundee's visit to Ibrox on Sunday.

Aarons, 26, who arrived on loan from Bournemouth last summer, said: "The manager has brought a calmness, some amazing ideas.

"And the togetherness in the group, I can feel it even just around the training ground.

"There's a big belief now and as we look at the league, again, there's a belief that we can do something special and we're all in for that.

"We've all come together and I think we've turned this around and put ourselves in a really positive position so now with 16 league games to go, it's on us to really capitalise on that and follow that up.

"We were way behind and again, I have to give credit to the group as well because we've turned things around, but as I say, there's no point getting to this position and then letting up and resting.

"Sunday is hugely important, then the next one, then the next one.

"We have full belief and as I say, I came here, a lot of the boys came here and the group here before, we want to do something special."

Aarons pointed to the 3-1 win over Celtic at Parkhead to start off 2026 as the standard required to come through and finish top of the heap.

He said: "Games like the Celtic game, we have to take that belief and we have to put that sort of performance on the pitch every single week.

"We can't rest on a game that's happened a few days before. There's another team that's trying to take points off us. I think we have to go all out and Sunday is a huge game.

"And I think when you're in this form, you can feel it building week to week. We're in a really good spot and now it's about keeping that going."

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Denmark winger Andreas Skov Olsen could make his Rangers debut while fellow new signing Tochi Chukwuani could make his first start. Belgian left-back Tuur Rommens, the third January signing, is catching up on fitness.

John Souttar and Dujon Sterling will miss out again but could return next week. Connor Barron is out long term with a knee ligament problem while Derek Cornelius and Nedim Bajrami remain out with muscle injuries.

Dundee have lost Billy Koumetio to a knee injury for several months while forward Joe Westley (ankle) remains out.

Rangers have stolen a march on Sheffield United in the race to sign 24-year-old midfielder Dan Neil from Sunderland, but that could potentially free up 31-year-old Joe Rothwell to join the Blades from the Ibrox club. (The Star), external

Rangers are interested in Hajduk Split defensive midfielder Niko Sigur, but the 22-year-old Canada international would prefer a move to Celtic, who are still keen and could restart talks. (Ekrem Konur on X), external

Barry Ferguson has laughed off the prospect of his nephew, Lewis, joining Celtic this month from Bologna, but the former Rangers interim manager would prefer a "cheeky loan" to Ibrox for the 26-year-old Scotland midfielder. (Glasgow Times), external

Rangers will be able to use their shared ownership with Leeds United to their advantage if they wish to pursue a deal for Celtic target Joel Piroe, the 26-year-old forward having struggled for game time since promotion to the Premier League. (Football Insider), external

Rangers are unlikely to make a move for Sheffield Wednesday 26-year-old Yan Valery in this transfer window while they still have three right-backs at the club. (Daily Record), external

Rangers have beaten off competition from Borussia Dortmund, AC Milan and Benfica and a string of top English Premier League clubs and agreed a two-and-a-half year contract with academy midfielder Kyle Glasgow for when he turns 16 next month. (Daily Record), external

Read Saturday's Scottish Gossip in full.

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• Thelo Aasgaard has scored in three of his past four starts in the Scottish Premiership (three goals), including both of his latest two at Ibrox, with three of his four league goals for Rangers this season coming at home (75%).

• Just 27% of Dundee's points in the Scottish Premiership this season have come away from home (six out of 22), the lowest ratio of any side, although they did pick up their first away league win of the season most recently at Dundee United (1-0).

• Rangers have won their past five league matches, last winning more on the spin in February 2024 under Philippe Clement (nine).

• Dundee are winless in 20 away games at Rangers in all competitions, although their 1-1 draw most recently (August 2025) ended a 19-game losing streak.

• Rangers are unbeaten in 19 meetings with Dundee in all competitions (W15 D4) since a 2-1 defeat in November 2017.