BBC SPORT | Football | Scot Prem | Rangers sweep Motherwell aside

Rangers 3-0 Motherwell

Rangers brushed aside Motherwell with comparative ease at Ibrox and should have had more goals to show for their dominance.

Lorenzo Amoruso put them ahead with a first-half strike and Peter Lovenkrands made sure of the victory with a header.

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Ronald de Boer added a third in the final minute after David Partridge had been sent off.

Rangers started positively and it took them only two minutes to prise open the Motherwell defence.

Mikel Arteta swung in a cross from the left and although Claudio Caniggia could not capitalise, the ball fell to Amoruso who swivelled to shoot past Stevie Woods.

Peter Lovenkrands heads home
Lovenkrands had a good chance to double the lead a few minutes later after an intelligent through-ball from Ricksen, but the Dane's shot on the turn was deflected wide by Martyn Corrigan's challenge.

Midway through the first half Arteta came close to a second goal for Rangers, picking up Lovenkrands pass, turning inside his marker before curling a shot that he was unlucky to see deflected wide.

Five minutes later, the Basque went even closer when his left-foot strike from 20 yards came back off the foot of the post.

Stefan Klos kept Rangers in front when Martyn Corrigan met Steven Hammell's free kick with a header from six yards only for the German to block the effort with his chest.

Motherwell had another chance to draw level five minutes into the second half, Hammell's cross finding its way to Ian Russell, but his shot was well off target.

Corrigan almost scored a bizarre own goal when his attempted clearance spun just wide and from the corner, Amoruso almost got his second with a header that Woods did well to hold.

Alan Freeland gives Partridge his marching orders
The second goal finally came for the league leaders on 72 minutes, and again Arteta was the architect.

He received a quick free kick from De Boer and crossed for Lovenkrands to head expertly past the helpless Woods.

Motherwell's cause was not helped with a quarter-of-an-hour left when David Partridge was shown a straight red card for a late challenge on Ricksen.

Rangers capitalised on the extra man in the final minute, De Boer following up after Woods had parried Lovenkrands' shot to tap Rangers third goal into an empty net.