Hearts were defeated 1-0 by Rangers at Ibrox this evening.
A first half strike from Cyriel Dessers sent the hosts on their way, even as the Jambos gave a battling account of themselves in the south west of Glasgow.
Hearts set out their stall at Ibrox with a defensive pairing of Frankie Kent and Kye Rowles, with Cammy Devlin and Malachi Boateng anchoring the midfield – complemented by a front two of Lawrence Shankland and Kenneth Vargas.
Rangers claimed the lead after five minutes through Cyriel Dessers; amidst the goalmouth scramble, the hosts worked the ball to him inside the box, with his low drive from close range going beyond the reach of Craig Gordon.
The Jambos responded well after going down; and enjoyed their fair share of possession as Rangers looked to hit on the counter. The next big chance came on the half hour mark as Mohamed Diomanded watched a low effort from distance sneak past the post.
Vaclav Cerny saw a ranged chance go astray, whilst Rangers had Jack Butland to thank for sticking a leg out to turn a Vargas effort past the post. It was a half devoid of clear cut chances, with more to come in the second 45.
HT: Rangers 1-0 Hearts
Hearts almost had themselves back on level terms within minutes of the restart, Shankland sliding in Vargas with a fantastic ball, with the Costa Rican seeing his finish crash off the post.
The second half again looked like it was to be a game of low chances as both sides wrestled for control in the midfield; with Rangers being forced into frequent slack passes as Hearts kept pressing.
Another big chance fell the way of the Jambos after 77 minutes as Vargas’ cross deflected into the path of Beni Baningime; who curled just wide from the edge of the box.
Moments later, Bajrami pounced on a Cerny cutback, but Craig Gordon did well to get down and beat the chance away from danger.
There were to be no further goals for either side; as Rangers claimed all three points, and Hearts went into the international break.
We’ll be back at Tynecastle in two week’s time to face Celtic in league action.
Rangers: Butland, Tavernier © (Sterling 67’), Souttar, Barron (Kasanwirjo 67’), Dessers (Danilo 77’), Diomande, Bajrami (McCausland 84’), Cerny (Dowell 84’), Jefté, Balogun, Raskin
Subs: Kelly, Propper, Dowell, Sterling, Kasanwirjo, Igamane, Hagi, McCausland, Danilo
Hearts: Gordon, Kent, Oyegoke, Shankland ©, Devlin (Musa 77’), Rowles, Spittal, Forrest (Dhanda 67’), Boateng (Baningime 67’), Penrice, Vargas
Subs: Clark, Kingsley, Halkett, Baningime, Grant, Dhanda, Wilson, Forrester, Musa
