Four-star Rangers get to enjoy a happy ending in a tale of two bookings
RANGERS 4 Miller (39), Morelos (69), Murphy (79), Candeias (90) dUNdEE 0 Judged by the scoreline alone this would appear an uneventfully one-sided win that saw the hosts move up into second place.
In truth it was anything but, with two incidents in particular leaving the respective managers bristling with post-match indignation.
The subject of Dundee boss Neil McCann’s ire was Bruno Alves whose tackle on his substitute Craig Wighton had him apoplectic.
“That was a disgusting challenge: a joke,” he raged.
“I have got a boy who is just returning from a cruciate ligament and that is a scissor action. It is almost thigh high! I am furious with it.
“He got a yellow card but it could easily have been red in my mind.
“I did an interview the other day when I said the game is not too tough but I am also all for protection. It was a shocking challenge.”
Almost as angry was Graeme Murty, who saw Alfredo Morelos go over the disciplinary threshold, picking up a ban for the first match after the top six split when he was booked after appearing to be taken out by Dundee No 1 Elliot Parish.
“I think we all feel a degree of injustice about the booking,” he said, revealing the Ibrox club would consider appealing.
“The goalkeeper has unfortunately felt the impact of his foot. How a referee can then judge a dive when the evidence is there for all to see is quite beyond me.
“I found it really hard to conduct myself as I believe a Rangers manager should.
“I’ve got 50,000 people wanting me to remonstrate with the referee, wanting me to march on to the pitch and tell him exactly what I think.
“I believe a Rangers manager should behave with more decorum than that.
“But when the opportunity presents itself I will tell the people in charge in no uncertain terms that I thought the decision was ludicrous.”
Those two contentious moments apart, the big story of this game was of Kenny Miller staking his claim to face Celtic in the Scottish Cup semi final a week today.
The 38-year-old was making his first appearance since December 13th when he skippered against Hibs.
He couldn’t have looked any less rusty, though, as he rifled a terrific shot right across the face of Elliot Parish’s goal and in at the far corner of the net for the opener.
Dundee couldn’t say they hadn’t been warned, the veteran striker having hit the post in the early exchanges.
“I’d relish the chance to go in against Celtic next week, of course I would,” he said.
“It’s a massive game, a Scottish Cup semi-final and we want to win the trophy. So we have to get past Celtic next week and it’ll be a tough test.
“It’s important that we get the work right, get the information that will give us a chance of winning on Sunday.
“If selected, I’d be delighted to play because it’ll be a fantastic occasion. Hopefully I can keep the jersey.”
There was an urgency too to Dundee’s play after that with Simon Murray, on loan from Hibs, forcing Wes Foderingham to save at his near post.
The visitors’ more open approach brought its own dangers as they were more vulnerable at the back and got badly exposed when Daniel Candeias darted forward and slammed a shot onto the post. The rebound feel sweetly for Miller but he wasn’t as clinical this time and blasted the ball wide.
It was only a temporary reprieve with Alfredo Morelos grabbing his 14th league goal of the season via a tap-in after a driven cross from the right supplied by Candeias.
Murphy added another with a confident finish before Candeias supplied the icing on the cake when lashing home a fourth in the final minute of regulation time.