SUPERMAN
Ryan? More like Clark Kent because the classy Kop loan star was Rangers’
The photographers couldn’t even get a snap of him at Rangers’ training on Friday.
Hidden away from the cameras. Kept in cold storage. As far as anyone outside of Auchenhowie was concerned Ryan Kent was still injuinjuredred.. HavHavinging been absent for weeks, the onloan Liverpool winger was apparently unavailable. Even Gers boss Steven Gerrard gave no hint or indication at his press conference that he’dmakehe’dm ake it. But for the first time in years prior to an Old Firm derby, an Ibrox gaffer had an ace up his sleeve. It used to be a regular occurrence in this fixture. Surprises in team selection, a radical change of shape, shock inclusions or omissions. All to give you that vital edge. And it has produced some unlikely heroes as a result.
Yesterday for Gerrard, Kent was that guy. His impact was pivotal.
Sure, he’s been nursing an injury – but I’d love to see Kent’s medical records.
You wouldn’t bet against the idea he was ALWAYS going to be ready for this one. And with Gerrard’s team crying out for creativity, he provided it.
Who knows i f Brendan Rodgers or Cel tic were expecting him to play? But they couldn’t handle him.
He tied Mikael Lustig in knots for 45 minutes that included teeing up Ryan Jack for the only goal at Ibrox.
It was no wonder the big Swede was forced off at half-time with a bad back.
And in the second half only Craig Gordon’s brilliance denied the wide man a goal himself.
Even so, Kent had done enough to earn his team a priceless victory.
It’s not often that Rodgers is out-thought, especially in an Old Firm context.
But maybe, just maybe, he underestimated the opposition here and Gerrard got the better of him in a pulsating game.
Yet the day had started on a solemn note.
A coming together of both clubs, as Old Firm chiefs laid wreaths in memory of the 66 fans who died in the 1971 Ibrox disaster.
A sharp reminder that amidst this Old Firm madness there are more important things in life.
And thankfully the minute’s silence that came just before kick-off – aside from a couple of daft shouts – was well observed.
That’s why this f ixture is unrivalled around the world. So soon after that show of respect, comes the bitter hatred.
And you could also sense ner vousness among the Rangers support.
After all, they had failed to win any of the last 12 derbies and their form going into this one wasn’t great either.
You could hear the punters before they even knew the team.
Desperation in their voices, querying whether key injured players like Kent and Scott Arfield would make it.
It was impossible to gauge the mood of the Celtic support.
They had just 750 tickets for the away end but, when Rodgers announced his side, they’d have been quietly confident.
Even without the services of Tom Rogic and Leigh Griffiths – and with Kieran Tierney and Odsonne Edouard only making the bench – the champions had plenty to worry Gers.
The fluidity of their attack would be Celtic’s strength againstg Gers’ more rigidg set-up. p When the game started, the pace was frenetic, atmosphere electric.
And Gerrard’s game-plan was clear from the off.
In the first Old Firm game at Parkhead in September, he opted for a defensive approach – and it backfired.
They were passive, couldn’t lay a glove on Celtic.
But one crunching Andy Hal liday tackle on Oliver Ntcham – followed by a roar in the Frenchman’s face – set the tone for how they would play.
Their starting position was 40 yards from Allan McGregor’s goal, which gave them a platform to press high.
They harried the Hoops into mistakes with Arfield deployed to disrupt Scott Brown. And their intensity yielded chances.
Daniel Candeias and Connor Goldson were both denied by Gordon as Rangers dominated.
Celtic were all over the place defensively in the first half.
There was nothing much scientific or tactical about what Rangers were doing.
This was old school, up-andat- them, get- in- their- faces football. But boy, was it effective.
Even though Celtic improved after the break, they got what they deserved. For once, in what seems l ike an eternity in this fixture, it was very much RangersRangers’ day.