Bojan Miovski’s opener at Rugby Park proved a neat summary of how Rangers returned to winning ways in the Scottish Premiership. It also emphasised subtle tweaks Danny Rohl effectively implemented once again.
Rohl picked up a fifth league win from seven attempts in Ayrshire, having inherited a side that’d managed one win in eight.
Never afraid to refresh ideas or alter approach, Rohl's recent modification to Miovski’s own role, the scorer of Rangers’ first two goals in a 3-0 win against Kilmarnock, offers a perfect example of effective, subtle changes.
Before last Sunday’s home meeting with Falkirk, the former Aberdeen forward, who so many supporters saw as a stick-on for goals upon a move from Girona in the summer, had often cut a peripheral figure, averaging just 11.65 passes per 90. Having managed only one league goal in nearly nine 90-minute prior to yesterday's win, his lack of impact was being increasingly critiqued.
In that meeting with Falkirk, Miovski attempted 17 passes in the second half alone, having created Mo Diomande’s winner against Livingston the week prior. Against Dundee United, that total rose to 28 and last night, Miovski attempted 21 passes. His involvement in his team's possession during the two recent away games has increased significantly.
As the below pass map depicts, Miovski wasn’t consigned to his usual No.9 berth on the last line against Kilmarnock and locked in the centre of the pitch, instead popping up in a wide variety of locations.
Rohl's solution to improve Miovski's form has been to involve the attacker in more of the game.
And so, as the North Macedonian popped up on the left-hand side of the box, seeming to pass up a shooting opportunity before belatedly getting an effort away from the right, it appeared to vindicate Rohl’s handing of a freer role.
Rangers find the opener against Kilmarnock thanks to Bojan Miovski 🔵 pic.twitter.com/HNOQI4mZyQ
— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) December 6, 2025
Miovski’s hold-up play had been inconsistent and static until these recent games, so why has Rohl involved him more, rather than less? In simple terms, he is seeking to create an extra man deeper in the pitch to offer a platform in possession.
Then, in theory, Rangers will access the final third more and Miovski should be afforded more opportunities to shoot.
That free man also afforded plenty of opportunities to attack Killie in transition, eventually capitalised upon for Miovski's second of the night.
Rangers have struggled not only to create chances but to reach the opposition's box and control matches all season. Rohl’s side had not been fashioning enough opportunities for a No.9 to live on the service of others and occupy the last line only.
Last night, Miovski finished at the level expected, scoring two goals from relatively low-value positions. If the first finish was instinctive, the second, hit across his body, was full of confidence.
Giving Miovski freedom to roam about the pitch and become that extra man in possession, often in unopposed scenarios - without a defender at his back, where his link-up can prove predictable - afforded space for others to attack and a constant outlet in possession.
The basic plan in Ayrshire was to create an extra man all the way up until the final third, to gain control and stop the hosts’ gaining any incentive to press. More rotations deeper in the pitch equalled more passing options.
Connor Barron, his side's man of the match, and Nico Raskin, splitting the No.6 role and dropping into the defence, offered the away side a platform, the type of base they’ve so often lacked this season.
Miovski’s tendency to drop and become a spare man, given Robbie Deas wouldn’t follow him, was complemented by Djeidi Gassama running beyond on the right (a feature that was a key factor in the space created for Miovski’s second strike of the night) and Diomande or a left-winger stretching play on the far side.
Take this example in the second half. Raskin is creating an extra man in the back three (with Nasser Djiga out of shot), Barron is at right-back, Diomande has dropped from the top of midfield and Miovski is deep in his own half. It's tricky for the home side to press.
Early on in his tenure, Rohl explained he wouldn’t be a coach consigned to one shape and from game to game, the German continues to tweak his approach. That is partly circumstantial - injuries and the summer window have hardly created nailed-on starters - but, unlike the man he replaced, Rohl is not dogmatic. Instead, has proven to be a problem-solver.
Solutions have created problems elsewhere. A back three tightened a leaky defence initially, but impacted chance creation. An altered line-up at Tannadice had addressed the latter before every forward available to Rohl missed a guilt-edged opportunity.
This match was another example of the head coach slightly altering his set-up to good effect.
Visiting Rugby Park was the first time the German has managed on such a pitch since his academy days and on Friday morning, in preparing for the game, he leaned on James Tavernier and Jack Butland’s experience at the ground to inform his approach.
If Rohl has been anything so far, from setting up TIFOs with supporters to his tactical ideas, it is street-smart. He understands, again unlike his predecessor, the impact of optics. Scottish football is not unconquerable, but it is unique and ignoring such semantics can prove your downfall quickly.
Similarly, his goal scorers on the night, Moore and Miovski, show Rohl will blend a system to suit players and not force players into a system. No longer isolated by the touchline himself, 18-year-old Moore picked up where he left off pre-injury and scored after receiving in a central position, where he appears more comfortable and unpredictable, before finding the net.
Mikey Moore finishes coolly to score Rangers’ third and secure all three points 3️⃣ pic.twitter.com/8pBefhZaUg
— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) December 6, 2025
Read more:
- Just 4 goals from 3 strikers: Alarming proof that shows Danny Rohl's latest issue
- Danny Rohl casts verdict on Bojan Miovski's Rangers performance vs Kilmarnock
Rangers were not perfect, but they weren't predictable. Attacks were quicker in moments and avenues mixed up, with the home defence turned as much as they were invited to press.
Killie could, and maybe should, have been a goal to the good when Bruce Anderson spurned a one-on-one chance that Barron cleared off the line early on, and the hosts were also aggrieved that VAR didn’t award them a penalty early in the second period. This wasn’t a nine out of 10 performance; however, the luck that went against Rangers in midweek swung back in their favour.
Miovski’s performance in particular was a reminder that while Rohl still has such a big job on his hands, the pragmatism his approach lends has helped him to tread water while inheriting such a fragile situation.
Few would've thought that Miovski acting as a deep-lying forward was the way forward last week, but Rohl is making a habit of finding clever solutions to a long list of problems.
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