2011-09-18: Rangers 4-2 Celtic, SPL

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Trivia

• Rangers go 4pts clear.
• Week leading up to this was occupied by speculation that Rangers to go to admin, with the HMRC (tax office) after £53m from them!!!!
• Daily Record get non-cooperation statement after a "Who is more hated at Ibrox?" headline of Lennon v Tax Man!
• El Kaddouri scores his only goal for the club (although was a bit of deflection and muffed ball by McGregor).

Review

Celtic throw it away after taking a 2-1 lead at half-time. We didn't show up in the second half. They managed to get three goals in the second half. A shambles.

"Nothing is won or lost in September and to be honest i always expect to get beat over there.

However, what we witnessed today was a total and utter disgrace. We have no fight in us. Say what you like about the huns but they know how to dig in and scrap. We just don't have it in us and havent had it for a very long time. Yet another total capitulation and the latest in a long line over there.

I hate to say it but Neil Lennon carries the can for that. This stupid insistence on height to take on the huns is strachan-esque in its incompetence. We have the players to beat them but not the tactical nous and the required fight. You could see within 45 seconds of the restart we had to step it up and we didnt. We let it get away from us and did nothing to stop it.

His perseverance with Samaras is just mindboggling. How he can say he has had good games over there is beyond me. He had 1 good game and have played them 6 or 7 times since and offered nothing. He runs about a lot but that is it. Offers nothing else and it was fitting he blocked the only shot on goal we had in the first 20 minutes wandering back from an offside position

We had a midfield that should have been able to dominate that game and they spent most it either camped on the edge of our box or watching the ball sail over their heads. And our manager sat on his hands and let it happen.

He also benched Ledley which was a mistake, watched Mulgrew lunge in for stupid tackle after stupid tackle after his booking. He was lucky to stay on as long as he did and Lennon did nothing.

Make no mistake, we got off lightly today. A combination of poor finishing and poor refereeing stopped this being their 6-2 moment. The honest mistake went our way and we couldnt capitalise.

As a club, the inability to build a decent back 4 is a disgrace. It's not just about the players. I have seen teams with far lesser players be far more solid. Do we actually practice defending at any point during training? it doesnt look like it.

Lafferty was bossing our players and not one of them stood up to it." (pauljames 123)

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Rangers 4 Celtic 2: match report

Telegraph.co.uk

By Telegraph staff and agencies

2:43PM BST 18 Sep 2011

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Steven Naismith scored twice as Rangers drew first blood in this season's Old Firm exchanges by seeing off 10-man Celtic in a thriller at Ibrox.

Naismith's opening goal was cancelled out by Gary Hooper, before Badr El Kaddouri marked his debut in the fixture with a goal.

Nikica Jelavic hauled Rangers level again and Kyle Lafferty also netted before Charlie Mulgrew saw red later on and Naismith had the final say with an injury-time strike.

The victory allowed the Scottish champions to move four points clear of their rivals at the top of the Scottish Premier League.

Both sides made two changes from their previous outings; a win over Dundee United in the SPL for Rangers and a Europa League defeat against Atletico Madrid for Celtic.

Jelavic and Sasa Papac recovered from injury and illness respectively to start for Rangers, with Kirk Broadfoot and Juan Manuel Ortiz dropping to the bench.

Celtic drafted fit-again captain Scott Brown and El Kaddouri into the side in place of James Forrest and Joe Ledley.

The match began at a frantic pace but without many clear-cut chances from either side in the opening spell.

Georgios Samaras collected a short pass from Hooper but blasted well over from long distance, with Allan McGregor untroubled in the Rangers goal.

At the other end, Maurice Edu took a tumble in the box but there was no suggestion of a penalty claim from the United States international.

Mulgrew was the first name in referee Craig Thomson's book when he was cautioned after 16 minutes for a late challenge on Naismith, which would prove costly later on.

Rangers opened the scoring in style with 22 minutes on the clock when Kelvin Wilson attempted to hook a Lafferty cross to safety.

But his clearance fell to the feet of Naismith, who left Fraser Forster with no chance with an unstoppable right-footed shot from just inside the box.

Lafferty then had the ball in the back of the net but only after being ruled offside when running onto a pass from Steven Davis.

Celtic were back on level terms with 34 minutes gone, with Brown setting up Hooper with a pass from the left and the striker producing a lovely finish from 10 yards.

The first two goals were all about fantastic finishes but the third came courtesy of a huge gaffe from the Rangers goalkeeper.

McGregor looked set to block a long-range attempt from El Kaddouri, only to allow the effort to slip between his legs and over the line.

Rangers emerged for the second half determined to haul themselves back into the game and Davis was denied by the woodwork when his shot from 25 yards crashed off the crossbar within seconds of the restart.

Lafferty was then denied by the offside flag for the second time in the match, with Jelavic the provider on this occasion, before Mark Wilson earned a booking for a foul on the Croatian.

Jelavic quickly recovered from the challenge to add his name to the scoresheet with 55 minutes gone when he met a Davis cross and bulleted a downward header past Forster from 10 yards.

Rangers pushed forward in search of more goals and Lafferty conspired to pass up two great opportunities, firstly sending a header over from six yards before failing to capitalise on an El Kaddouri error by firing wide of the gaping net.

Celtic also looked capable of finding the back of the net again and Glenn Loovens looked on in disbelief as his header smacked off the post.

However, Rangers reclaimed their lead after 67 minutes when Lafferty finally grabbed a goal, stabbing home from close range after seeing his initial effort blocked.

Celtic were dealt another blow when Mulgrew was dismissed with 15 minutes to go when he received a second yellow card, this time for a challenge on Davis.

Rangers made the most of their numerical advantage and it was Naismith who put the gloss on the win with a left-footed shot in injury time, as Ally McCoist claimed an impressive victory in his first clash as manager against Celtic.

Page last updated at 13:28 GMT, Sunday, 18 September 2011 14:28 UK By Andy Campbell

BBC Sport Scotland

The maiden derby of the season was a high-scoring encounter League leaders Rangers prevailed in the season's first Old Firm derby to move four points clear of Celtic.

Steven Naismith's spectacular strike put the hosts ahead but Gary Hooper equalised with a tidy finish.

Badr El Kaddouri's drive slipped through the grasp of goalkeeper Allan McGregor to give Celtic the lead.

Goals by Nikica Jelavic and Kyle Lafferty turned the match in Rangers' favour, Celtic's Charlie Mulgrew was sent off and Naismith netted late on.

Rangers remain unbeaten in the Scottish Premier League with manager Ally McCoist winning his first Glasgow derby in charge.

Both sides made two changes, Jelavic and Sasa Papac replacing Juan Manuel Ortiz and Kirk Broadfoot for the home side and Joe Ledley and James Forrest making way for El Kaddouri and captain Scott Brown in the Celtic line-up.

Naismith had been Rangers' brightest player in the opening quarter and it was his first Old Firm goal that broke the deadlock after a quiet spell of play. Naismith began and ended the scoring as Rangers claimed victory Kelvin Wilson's clearance from Lafferty's cross went straight to Naismith in the right-hand corner of the box and the Scotland international's controlled volley flew into the top corner.

Georgios Samaras, who earlier cleared the crossbar with a shot, blocked team-mate Hooper's stinging drive and because the Greek was in an offside position, the attack broke down.

But Hooper was not to be denied 11 minutes before the break as he beat the offside trap to latch on to Brown's defence-splitting pass and beat Allan McGregor with a superb finish from the inside-left channel.

And, four minutes before the break, McGregor stooped to make a seemingly routine save from El Kaddouri's drilled shot but contrived to the let the ball squeeze through his gloves and over the line.

Steven Davis came within inches of levelling straight after the turnaround with a shot from outside the box that rivalled Naismith's in quality and canoned off the top of Celtic's crossbar.

Lafferty volleyed into the net after finishing off an intricate passing move but the offside flag cut short Rangers' celebrations.

But the pressure finally paid off when Jelavic peeled off his marker and bulleted a downward header past goalkeeper Fraser Forster.

Lafferty squandered two excellent opportunities to edge Rangers ahead, heading over from Gregg Wylde's cross before dinking a volley wide after El Kaddouri's mistake, the forward missing the target on both occasions.

Celtic were then foiled by the post when Glenn Loovens' header from Charlie Mulgrew's corner clattered off the upright.

Rangers moved upfield and Wylde's centre caused havoc in the Celtic defence with Jelavic's header and then Lafferty's shot blocked before the latter finally found the net with his left foot, the former Burnley man scoring in an Old Firm match for the first time.

Mulgrew had earlier been booked for catching Naismith and the versatile player was dismissed after his lunge on Davis was punished with a second yellow card.

Dorin Goian's shot at the back post lacked accuracy and Forster blocked another effort by Naismith as Rangers searched for a more comfortable lead.

And Naismith made sure of victory in injury time when he darted into the box to crisply volley Davis's centre low past Forster.