Tom Lawrence's moment of brilliance secured a disjointed Rangers side a 1-0 victory against Hibernian in the Scottish Premiership at Ibrox. The Govan stadium was fully operational for the first time since the completion of the Copland Stand refurbishment, but the home team seemed sluggish until the Gers midfielder broke the deadlock in the 34th minute with a superb curling finish.
Rangers goalkeeper Jack Butland saved a Mykola Kukharevych penalty just before halftime, but even that failed to ignite Philippe Clement's team, who appeared to be a shadow of the side that convincingly defeated Malmö 2-0 in the Europa League opener on Thursday night. Despite a lackluster performance, Rangers managed to secure their fourth consecutive win since their 3-0 defeat by Celtic at Parkhead at the start of the month, moving them five points behind their Old Firm rivals and Aberdeen at the top of the table.
Unsurprisingly, after their European exertions, Clement rotated his squad. The left-back Jefté returned from suspension, with midfielder Nico Raskin and winger Ross McCausland starting alongside striker Hamza Igamane, who missed the match in Sweden due to passport issues. David Gray, whose Hibs side were unbeaten in three games, gave winger Junior Hoilett his first start, with Lewis Miller at full-back and Josh Campbell back in the side.
Hibs had the first real chances, with Hoilett's effort from inside the box clearing the bar before a drive from midfielder Kwon Hyeok-kyu was blocked by Gers defender John Souttar. However, just after the half-hour mark, Lawrence took a McCausland pass and curled the ball high into the net from the edge of the box with perfect execution. The offside flag initially went up, but VAR eventually confirmed the goal was valid.
It was Lawrence's third goal of the season, matching his tally from last season, and it briefly lifted the crowd's spirits. Igamane flashed a shot over the bar, and Kwon came close with a drive from outside the box, which was touched behind by Butland. From the resultant corner, there was a VAR check for a Hibs penalty when Souttar handled Kukharevych's shot. Referee Nick Walsh checked his pitchside monitor and pointed to the spot, with cheers erupting when Butland dived to his right to save from the Hibs attacker.
McCausland and Raskin made way for Kieran Dowell and Nedim Bajrami at the start of the second half, and Cyriel Dessers replaced the quiet Igamane. However, it was the visitors who took control of the game. Clement appeared to react to groans from the Rangers fans after Vaclav Cerny passed the ball backwards instead of pushing towards the Hibs goal, and spoke at length with the winger after replacing him with Dujon Sterling moments later.
Dwight Gayle made his debut for the visitors, replacing Hoilett, with Élie Youan coming on for Kukharevych. Rangers struggled to find their rhythm, much to the frustration of the home support. Dessers missed a good chance to double the lead in the 81st minute when he headed a cross from Bajrami straight at goalkeeper Josef Bursik, before Gayle headed wide from close range. Rangers defender Robin Pröpper then headed high over the bar with three minutes remaining, leaving the home side to nervously defend their slender lead until the final whistle.
