All’s ’Well that ends well for Gio

motherwell.. 1 rANGerS ........ 3

GIOVANNI van Bronckhorst put on a fringe festival at Fir Park. Now it’s time for the main event on the biggest of stages.

It was job done for the Rangers manager in Motherwell. The Dutchman was forced to take a calculated gamble with his squad and it paid off.

But it was a tightrope walk at times.

Van Bronckhorst opted to rest some of his key men with an eye on Thursday’s European showdown with RB Leipzig and ended up in danger of serving up the Premiership title to Celtic on a plate.

A man down after half an hour and Motherwell back in the game, it wasn’t just Graham Alexander’s side who had the whiff of blood in their nostrils.

Those of green and white persuasion were digging out the bunting.

Imagine it. Van Bronckhorst makes eight changes and his side spill points to set up a potential title decider at Parkhead on Sunday. Yet, the Dutchman has proved he and his team are made of stern stuff.

Afford

Shorn of the Europa League’s most prolific marksman in Alfredo Morelos, able deputy Kemar Roofe and Aaron Ramsey van Bronckhorst couldn’t afford to lose many more with Leipzig looming.

So Ryan Jack, John Lundstram and Ryan Kent were bubblewrapped on the Fir Park bench. Joe Aribo and Calvin Bassey came off it, but only when the task in hand demanded it.

The stand-ins didn’t let him down. Scott Wright scored a slick second goal, having been involved in the first.

Fashion Sakala’s burst helped make it 2-1 and he won the penalty for James Tavernier to bury the third and finish off a Well side who had a decent 10 minutes up to half-time before completely shrivelling up in the second period.

By that stage Leon Balogun had gone for a rush of blood after diving in on Dean Cornelius inside half an hour, to rule himself out of the season’s final Old Firm derby at Celtic Park next week.

That game can wait. The question now for van Bronckhorst is what to do up top in Germany.