49ers have days to fix ‘crazy’ Rangers concern after Dundee

Rangers look like a side circling the answer without quite landing on it. The win over Dundee at Ibrox on Sunday — a 3-1 result that felt more hard-earned than the scoreline suggests — nudged them closer in the title race, but it also sharpened the sense that something vital is still missing.

James Tavernier’s penalty set the tone, calm and clinical as ever, before late goals from substitutes Danilo and Dejidi Gassama sealed the points deep into stoppage time. The celebrations were loud, the relief obvious. Yet amid the noise, familiar doubts lingered.

VAR’s malfunction grabbed headlines, but a more pressing issue surfaced in plain sight. Once again, Rangers relied on defenders and late interventions rather than a ruthless presence through the middle. For a club chasing the Scottish Premiership crown, that is a risky way to live.

Rangers have been busy in the January market, already welcoming three new faces, and links continue with Sunderland’s Dan Neil and others across Europe. Strangely, though, the striker department has not dominated the rumour mill — a surprise given the numbers.

Bojan Miovski’s struggles in front of goal persisted, while Tavernier now sits two clear at the top of Rangers’ league scoring charts with six. That fact alone raised eyebrows, not least from Rory Loy.

Via Sportsound, he said: “Tavernier is Rangers’ top scorer in the league with six goals. Miovski and Chermiti are behind him on four.

“For Rangers to find themselves where they are in the league and so close to the top, crazy given their lack of goals from forward players.”

It is a sharp observation, and the statistics offer little defence. Cyriel Dessers, often criticised during his time in Glasgow, delivered 29 goals in all competitions last season and averaged 0.77 per 90 in the league. Miovski, by contrast, sits on eight with a return of 0.27 per game.

That gap feels decisive. If Rangers are to turn promise into silverware, the final days of the window may need to deliver a striker capable of shifting the balance.