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WED 17 APR 2024SCOTTISH PREMIERSHIP
Dundee
0
Rangers
0
FT
HT 0-0
Dundee 0-0 Rangers: Visitors suffer a second title blow within days but Philippe
Clement remains hopeful
By Clive Lindsay
BBC Sport Scotland
Last updated on1 hour ago1 hour ago.
From the sectionScottish Premiership
Philippe Clement insists Rangers "still have our fate in our hands" despite
suffering a second blow to their Scottish Premiership title hopes within three days
as they were held to a goalless draw away to Dundee.

On top of Sunday's 3-2 defeat by Ross County, Clement's side have now squandered
their two games in hand over Celtic and are now three points adrift of the reigning
champions.

Dundee had an early strike from Amadou Bakayoko ruled out for offside, while the
closest Rangers came to scoring was when Jon McCracken saved superbly from Cyriel
Dessers as mental pressure mounted on the visitors.

Clement, though, insisted: "It was nothing to do with focus, desire or will. It was
to do with a lack of efficiency, some luck as well."
Rangers nevertheless have now only won two of their latest eight games and will
almost certainly have to win at Celtic Park for the first time since 2020 if they
are to prevent their city rivals retaining the title.

"I don't speak about favourites," Clement told BBC Scotland. "If we win the last
five games, the fans are going to be happy."

Meanwhile, Dundee have built on clinching their first top-six finish since 2015 at
the weekend by moving to within two points of St Mirren to improve their hopes of
European qualification for the first time since 2003.

Reaction & as it happened

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Keep up to date with Rangers news on BBC
Clement said before kick-off that his side needed a return to basics that were
missing in that defeat in Dingwall.

However, within seconds of kick-off, Bakayoko was allowed to turn and send in a
cross that fell to Malachi Boateng, with the midfielder's low drive flying just
wide of the far post.

Dundee lost captain Joe Shaughnessy to injury after nine minutes and were
immediately caught out at the back as Abdallah Sima's low drive was blocked by
McCracken's legs.

That first threat on goal failed to settle the visitors and, when Jack Butland
parried Luke McCowan's curling free-kick, Scott Tiffoney's shot on the rebound off
the Rangers goalkeeper was turned in by Bakayoko but ruled out for offside.

Even when Rangers began to enjoy the majority of ball, the closest they came to a
goal before the break was a Connor Goldson header straight at McCracken that the
goalkeeper gathered at the second attempt with no visiting player taking advantage.

McCracken blocked a Tom Lawrence shot at the front post, while substitute Dessers
forced the goalkeeper into a fine finger-tip save.

Rangers were now showing signs of desperation and the night threatened to go from
bad to worse as home midfielder Lyall Cameron had a shot blocked in front of goal.

As it was, time ran out not only on their hopes of grabbing a late winner but also
seemingly on their hopes of denying Celtic another title.

Player of the match - Lyall Cameron (Dundee)

Dundee's Lyall Cameron shoots for goal
Lyall Cameron just shaded it from livewire midfield team-mate Luke McCowan as they
proved a handful for their Rangers counterparts
Title dreams crumble as Euro hopes rise - analysis
For the second game in a row, a stranger to Scottish football would have had
difficulty picking out this Rangers team as the title contenders.

Dundee's tigerish midfield appeared to have too much energy for their Rangers
counterparts and, although Rangers gradually dominated the possession, it was
laboured and lacking the creativity required to break down a well-organised home
defence.

Clement had handed injury troubled Kemar Roofe a first start since December in
place of Cyriel Dessers up front, but the Jamaica international looked too
lightweight and lacking match fitness to trouble a Dundee defence seeking a second
clean sheet in a row.
Rangers have gone from a position where they could have been two points ahead of
Celtic by winning their two games in hand to one where, even if they win the final
Old Firm derby of the season away to their city rivals, they will be behind on goal
difference should both sides win their other four remaining games.

While the pressure looks to have been too great for Rangers to handle, Dundee have
risen to the occasion in recent weeks with only one defeat in six outings.

Rangers had won their previous eight meetings between the sides by a 22-2
aggregate, with Dundee last avoiding defeat in December 2018.

However, these Dark Blues are a different beast under Tony Docherty and, despite it
being their first season back in the top flight, have every right to be dreaming of
bringing European nights back to Dens Park.

After two postponements because of the state of their pitch, the home fans will
feel this was a game well worth waiting for.

What they said

Dundee manager Tony Docherty: "I thought it was a fantastic team performance. The
clean sheets in the last two games show the progression we are making as a team.

"We have a strong, resilient team there with a laser focus on each game. Going into
a pivotal time in the season, we have a squad that are growing and growing."

Rangers manager Philippe Clement: "We should have won this game, we were the best
team by far. The most possession by far, the most chances. Things didn't go our
side with saves from the goalkeeper and blocks from other players.

"Today, I was disappointed. I was angry after the Ross County game because we lost
our structure and our football in a big part of the game. That was not the case
today."

What's next?
Rangers face Heart of Midlothian in Sunday's Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden
Park (15:00) then return to Premiership duty by visiting St Mirren on 28 April
(12:30) before Dundee host leaders Celtic later than afternoon (15:00).

Player of the match

Luke McCowan

with an average of8.79

Dundee
Dundee
Rangers
Rangers
Avg
Squad number17Player nameMcCowan
Average rating
8.79

Squad number22Player nameMcCracken

Average rating
8.50

Squad number10Player nameCameron

Average rating
8.48

Squad number3Player nameDodgson

Average rating
8.45

Squad number28Player nameSylla

Average rating
8.44

Squad number7Player nameTiffoney

Average rating
8.44

Squad number6Player nameMcGhee

Average rating
8.44

Squad number23Player nameBoateng

Average rating
8.41

Squad number9Player nameBakayoko

Average rating
8.39

Squad number12Player nameLamie

Average rating
8.31

Squad number29Player namePortales

Average rating
8.09

Squad number5Player nameShaughnessy

Average rating
7.96

Squad number8Player nameMain

Average rating
7.95

Squad number44Player nameCostelloe

Average rating
7.71

Line-ups
Match Stats
Live Text
Home TeamDundeeAway TeamRangers
Possession
Home35%Away65%
Shots
Home7Away17
Shots on Target
Home1Away5
Corners
Home2Away9
Fouls
Home11Away13
Scores, Results & Fixtures
WEDNESDAY 17TH APRIL 2024
Dundee
0
Rangers
0
FT
View all Scottish Premiership scores
As It Stood
Team P GD Pts
1
Celtic
33 54 78
2
Rangers
33 49 75
3
Hearts
33 12 62
4
Kilmarnock
33 9 51
5
St Mirren
33 -5 43
6
Dundee
33 -10 41
7
Hibernian
33 -7 39
8
Motherwell
33 -5 37
9
Aberdeen
33 -14 35
10
St Johnstone
33 -22 31
11
Ross County
33 -24 30
12
Livingston
33 -37 18
View full Scottish Premiership table
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