CAPITAL PUNISHMENT
Rangers made to suffer more domestic pain as Hearts edge stormy clash
THE spectacular, unexpected and alarming disintegration of Rangers’ domestic ambitions is complete.
All that remains on the home front, barring an utter collapse by a Celtic squad with no European distraction, is the drudgery of saving face and ensuring their form of the last six weeks lingers no further.
It dare not. But right now, Steven Gerrard can offer no guarantees on behalf of a group that has left him in despair since the turn of the year, a feeling that sunk to a managerial career low yesterday.
That it came after the high — ‘the best performance we’ve had’ — in Braga in midweek makes the latest episode of the slump all the more troubling.
This was a second defeat of the year to a Hearts team that was being hammered by Hamilton Accies before a red card spared them when last seen just a fortnight ago.
The tills rang with European riches through the week but the Ibrox cabinet will be once more be without silverware.
A much-derided Hearts defence that had looked dishevelled at best against Celtic and Accies survived despite losing John Souttar to a 16th-minute injury.
The Rangers rearguard, meanwhile, was back to its panicky worst after the heroics in Portugal.
Oliver Bozanic’s third goal of the season shortly before the hour settled a quarter-final devoid of quality — but not short on incident.
Hearts emerged from their own recent troubles with a deserved place in the semi-finals alongside city rivals Hibs.
For Rangers, who could ever have guessed when they swaggered out of Celtic Park victorious on December 29 that the bid for a major Scottish football honour would be all but over two months later?
The peak, it now turns out, was shortly before Alfredo Morelos decided to tumble instead of taking a shot in the 96th minute as he homed in on Celtic goalkeeper Fraser Forster on that day at Parkhead.
The Colombian was given a red card then for simulation and hasn’t been seen since in his proper, prolific guise as the club’s top scorer and most prized asset.
Yesterday, Morelos was still nowhere to be seen. The fifth game he has missed this season through indiscipline. On this occasion, off-field indiscipline.
The striker is just one of the men Gerrard has talked up and rewarded with an improved contract over the last 18 months.
Scathingly, the manager wondered aloud in an impressive and frank post-match address if those players realised the significance of winning last night and remaining in the Scottish Cup.
Despite just one goal in eight games, Morelos was fully expected to start after missing the midweek trip because of a suspension.
However, Gerrard made the huge call to drop him from his squad entirely despite Florian Kamberi’s cup-tied status.
In his absence, Greg Stewart played through the middle until Jermain Defoe’s comeback from a month out injured as a second-half substitute.
Through the continued chaos at Hearts, the Scottish Cup run had been unusually trouble-free.
They coasted past Airdrie 5-0 in the fourth round, then travelled to Falkirk to post a professional job in appalling conditions, Sean Clare’s second-half penalty booking their place in the quarter-finals.
Thousands of empty seats told the story of Tynecastle disaffection but, undeterred by that backdrop and the Souttar setback, Hearts were adventurous and effective pressing for an opener.
Rangers keeper Allan McGregor gathered low to his right after Lewis Moore squeezed a shot through a crowded penalty area.
From Bozanic’s inswinging free-kick, McGregor nudged Steven Naismith’s glancing header over the crossbar. Then, from the corner, Loic Damour was denied at the back post by a Connor Goldson intervention.
Aaron Hickey headed over to complete a
flurry of activity in front of McGregor’s goal from Michael Smith’s cross.
Gerrard suffered a personnel blow, too. Scott Arfield, scorer of three goals in the previous two rounds, was forced off and replaced by Sheyi Ojo.
In the absence of a regular goal threat, Ryan Jack went closest for Rangers before the interval, taking a clearing header on the drop from the edge of the box. His volley was just inches wide.
Referee Steven McLean said no to a penalty claim for either side — denying Ryan Kent when felled by Damour, then — incredibly — letting George Edmundson off with ushering the ball out with an arm for a corner as Naismith ranged in.
Hearts thought they were over their denial quickly when scoring from the flag kick seconds later but Damour had forced the ball in with his hand, prompting a blaze of bickering to close the half.
Already on a booking for hauling down Kent, Rangers screamed red card for the Hearts midfielder — a protest that McGregor vehemently took to the referee as they headed towards the tunnel.
And in echoes of a couple of Merseyside derby dust-ups, Naismith and Gerrard exchanged pleasantries while the Rangers manager waited to have words with referee McLean.
Damour’s very presence on the pitch continued to be a pain for the visitors, his close-range volley to open the second half blocked by Edmundson before McGregor could be troubled.
When the Rangers keeper was drawn into action, however, the damage was fatal for his Scottish Cup season.
James Tavernier wasn’t able to force his flick of a header back towards his No1, allowing Moore to steal in.
McGregor rushed off his line but Moore kept possession and his cool before cutting back for Bozanic to sweep the ball home.
The toiling Jack was belatedly taken off for Ianis Hagi and Defoe replaced Stewart as Gerrard committed his salvage operation by 67 minutes.
Without the menace of Morelos, however, there was no figure capable of dragging the visitors up the park, no relentless Rangers rally. Apart from Kent testing
Zdenek Zlamal at the near post, the only direct hits on the Hearts goal came from the occasional missile hurled by the away support in frustration at the home keeper’s time-wasting.
Indeed, Hearts missed a glorious chance to seal the result with a second goal when Edmundson fluffed a clearance with his heel to tee up Naismith but the former Rangers man poked his effort wide.
Edmundson then twice fired free headers wastefully off target in the final 10 minutes.
Gerrard paused for a few moments to wait for Daniel Stendel. The German coach was too busy being smothered by well-wishers on his own bench.
The Ibrox manager then made for the tunnel to face finding something salvageable in the debris of a Scottish campaign that promised so much.