Move over Moore: Rangers star proved why he's their "best player" vs Dundee

For the first time since February, Rangers have won three successive Scottish Premiership games.

On Sunday, the Gers demolished Dundee 3-0 at Dens, sporting their eye-catching luminous all orange fourth kit; that’s too many kits!

Nicolas Raskin broke the deadlock, heading home James Tavernier’s corner, Mikey Moore slotted home a second soon after before, after an uneventful hour or so, Djeidi Gassama rubber-stamped the points in stoppage time, curling into the top corner.

Danny Röhl’s side go into the international break in fourth, level on points with Hibs, five points below fierce rivals Celtic and 12 adrift of leaders Hearts, who dropped points elsewhere on Sunday.

When Rangers return to action against Livingston in a fortnight, which star can Röhl rely on following his outstanding display in the city of discover?

Mikey Moore's massive moment

Dens Park will always hold a special place in Moore’s heart, given that it is the venue at which he scored his first goal for Rangers.

When Moore joined on a season-long loan from Tottenham, he did so with sky-high expectations, with then-manager Russell Martin labelling him an “outstanding young player” upon his arrival.

However, he really struggled to make an impact under Martin, but in fairness, so did everyone, although he has become more of a regular under Röhl.

Well, he rewarded the new manager with a sparkling display against Dundee, attempting six dribbles, mustering two shots, registering two key passes and putting in a generally impressive display, as per Sofascore.

Speaking during Sky Sports’ Coverage, James McFadden believes that Moore is enjoying a lot more freedom under Röhl, expecting that he’ll get even better in the coming weeks, while Chris Sutton added that he has “flourished” more than any other player since the change of manager.

Thus, the teenager appears set to remain a key figure for Rangers, but which other key member of their squad shone during Sunday’s win?

Rangers star was as impressive as Moore

Martin made many mistakes during his ill-fated and historically short Rangers reign, but falling out with Raskin was arguably his most egregious misstep.

Raskin’s exclusion for home games against Celtic and Hearts, failing to win or score in either, was when supporters began to turn against Martin, a baffling decision considering he was the club’s player of the year last time round, as voted for both by fellow players and fans alike.

Röhl on the other hand has made him a central figure, and Raskin underlined why with a dominant display at Dens, not just scoring but proving dogged, winning 100% of his tackles and winning plenty of duels.

Goals

1

1st

Shots

2

3rd

Big chances missed

1

1st

Accurate passes

53

2nd

Key passes

2

1st

Defensive actions

6

6th

Interceptions

2

2nd

Duels contested

16

1st

Duels won

7

2nd

Touches

73

4th

SofaScore rating

8.4

2nd

As the table documents, Raskin put in a dominant display on Sunday.

He ranked in the top two for a whole host of statistics, including accurate passes, key passes, interceptions and duels contested, heading home his second goal of the season and he very easily could have scored another, denied by Jon McCracken who made seven saves all told.

During Sky Sports’ coverage, Kris Boyd asserted that Raskin is at his best when allowed to be “on the front foot”, believing he can rediscover his “outstanding” form from last season, with Sutton agreeing that he remains “Rangers’ best player”.

John Walker meantime labelled his performances “utterly sensational” earlier this year, expecting that when he does depart, is could well be for a club-record fee.

So, if Rangers harbour any hopes of salvaging this season, both domestically and in the Europa League, Raskin will certainly be a key figure.

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Lavia's Chelsea career could be ended by exciting academy star at Cobham

Chelsea had the chance to build on their impressive win over Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday night, but as they have done so many times this season, they faltered.

On paper, a game against Qarabağ looked like an easy three points for Enzo Maresca’s side, but in the end, they had to settle for just one.

The draw leaves them 12th in the Champions League, but the worst thing to come out of the match was another injury to Roméo Lavia.

The Belgian has been extremely unlucky during his time at Chelsea, and unless his luck improves, he could eventually be replaced by one of Cobham’s most promising prospects.

Lavia's Chelsea career

Chelsea signed Lavia from Southampton, and from under Liverpool’s nose, in the summer of 2023.

At the time, it seemed like money well spent, as the youngster was one of the most exciting midfielders in the Premier League the previous season and, as journalist Sam Tighe pointed out, “a shining star despite playing in terrible circumstances most of the time.”

Unfortunately, the youngster suffered a muscle tear and then an ankle injury in September 2023 and couldn’t make his competitive debut for the club until the 27th of December.

However, he wouldn’t kick on from there, as, thanks to a hamstring injury, he wouldn’t make another appearance all season.

Last season was marginally better, but even then, five injuries limited him to just 22 appearances, four of which came at the Club World Cup.

To nobody’s surprise, this year has not been much better, as the 21-year-old missed the first five league games with a muscle strain and came off the pitch on Wednesday night with another muscle injury.

Across the last two and a half years, Lavia has made just 30 appearances for the Blues, coming to a total of 1341 minutes.

23/24

1

32′

24/25

22

1069′

25/26

7

240′

It would be hard to describe his time at Chelsea as anything other than a failure at the moment, and if he continues to be unreliable over the coming years, he could see himself replaced by an upcoming Cobham gem.

The Cobham gem who could eventually replace Lavia

While the results for the senior side have been frustratingly inconsistent, the good news for Chelsea is that they have several exciting prospects coming through the academy at the moment.

In The Pipeline

The likes of Chizaram Ezenwata, Shim Mheuka and Reggie Walsh could all make as first team regulars in a few years.

However, when it comes to a potential Lavia replacement, it’s hard to look past Reggie Watson.

The hugely exciting talent may still be just 15 years old, but is already making waves in the academy and could become a part of the first team squad a few years from now.

The up-and-coming ace has demonstrated an ability to play in several different positions, from central midfield to centre-back, but, like the Belgian, is primarily a defensive midfielder.

According to one analyst, the “excellent” prospect has several key strengths which could make him an ideal long-term six for Marseca, such as being an “excellent ball retriever,” having “good passing and vision”, and having a knack for “dictating the tempo of the game.”

As if that wasn’t enough, the youngster is also “physically strong” for someone his age, and with all that in mind, it’s easy to see why he’s been described as being “so complete.”

Finally, on top of doing the business for the Blues’ youth sides, the teenager has also won six caps for England’s U16s, in which he’s scored three goals, primarily from defensive midfield.

Ultimately, it will be a few years yet until Watson is playing for the first team, but if Lavia remains injury-prone at that time, the Belgian could find himself replaced by the youngster.

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