View: Rohl left with a mess of Rangers' own making after second-half call today
A 0-0 draw against Hibernian was the last thing Rangers needed amid their chase down of Scottish Premier League leaders Hearts.
Danny Rohl’s side had hoped to maintain pace with the pack leaders, but instead they ended up taking a step back.
The gap to Hearts has now grown to six points, where it was just four before this weekend’s matches had kicked off.
Elsewhere, Celtic also managed to claw distance back, with their 2-0 win over Falkirk putting them level on points with the Gers.
However, a win might have been salvaged if Rohl had made a different decision in the stalemate.
Danny Rohl made the wrong substitution vs Hibernian
Rangers struggled to break down Hibernian, and despite their 11 shots on goal, they never truly tested the Edinburgh side.
Rohl’s team forced just one save from the opposition goalkeeper, whereas Jack Butland was faced with six stops at Easter Road.
After 56 minutes, the Gers head coach opted to roll the dice, and the introduction of Mikey Moore was a positive substitution.
The German had the option to make a similar decision 13 minutes later, when Andreas Skov Olsen’s number was displayed by the fourth official.
However, it was Nedim Bajrami who entered the game, rather than Oliver Antman. It was an odd choice, considering the G51 outfit were finding a lot of joy down the flanks and behind the Hibs fullbacks.
Ultimately, the substitute did not pay off, and the Gers had to settle for a point on the road.
But the bigger picture here is that Rangers allowed Findlay Curtis to depart on loan this week.
Surely he would have been a better option to call upon as the game went on? Sanctioning his exit has left Rohl so light that he had to turn to Bajrami instead. It is therefore a problem of the Gers’ own doing.
Why Oliver Antman should have been brought on for Rangers
Antman offers a lot of pace out wide, and Rangers were finding joy utilising speed over on the other wing with Moore.
Having both fullbacks occupied with tricky wingers would have given the Hibernian defence plenty of problems and plenty to think about.
While Bajrami does have his qualities, he is not a direct winger such as the Finnish international. The Albanian is more of a playmaker.
Antman’s skillset is much more suited to breaking down teams that are difficult to play against.
On this occasion, the Rangers manager got his decision wrong, and he failed to capitalise on a key weakness that presented itself during the match.
With a Scottish title on the line, Rohl cannot afford to make similar decisions going forward.
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The post View: Rohl left with a mess of Rangers' own making after second-half call today appeared first on Ibrox News.
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