Michael Beale maintained his unbeaten start to life as Rangers manager with a hard-fought 3-2 win over Kilmarnock at Rugby Park on Wednesday night.
Like many of the previous eight matches under his tenure, the Ibrox club had to fight back from a goal down with a double from Alfredo Morelos and Ryan Kent's strike ensuring all three points were secured.
It’s now seven wins from eight for Beale, although he admitted during his post-match press conference plenty of improvement is required.
“Kilmarnock started on the front foot and we started the complete opposite,” he admitted.
“We didn’t heed the warnings the staff had given players and we found ourselves 1-0 down, with a mountain to climb.
“Again, I thought we recovered well, dominated possession and scored a very good goal. We had to organise a bit at half-time, we did, got ourselves 3-1 in front and maybe could have scored a couple more.
“Then in the last five minutes, again, we give away a sloppy set play.”
If we analyse the StatsBomb data from the game, Beale’s comments ring true.
A look at the xG trendline, charting all the game's chances, tells us Rangers would’ve won this match 59 times out of 100. They created very little until Morelos levelled matters midway through the first half, even if a number of promising attacks lacked a final pass, such as Kent's misplaced pass to Sakala when Rangers created a three-vs-two.
In the end, the Light Blues recorded a cumulative xG of 1.47 compared to Killie’s 0.73.
Derek McInnes’ men burst out of the traps from the off and deservedly went ahead when Chris Stokes powered a header home from a corner.
The goal was a poor one for Rangers to lose but from the hosts’ perspective, it was a great finish. The Post-Shot xG of 0.66, from an initial chance rating of 0.14, shows that Stokes connected well with the header. However, the likelihood of a goal had plenty to do with Jon McLaughlin leaving his goalline.
Remember, xG measures the likelihood of a chance resulting in a goal. PSxG reevaluates that likelihood once factors such as shot quality, player positioning and goalkeeper positioning have been taken into consideration.
Kilmarnock’s second goal of the night set up a nervy finish when Joe Wright volleyed into the top corner. Strangely, the PSxG measured just 0.07 when the ball left Wright’s boot but the eye test tells us it was a terrific hit.
The Rangers goals were well-worked and taken. Morelos’ first was created by clever work from Fashion Sakala, who peeled away from Ash Taylor before firing the ball across the face of goal for the Colombian to convert.
The finish itself was impressive too, registering a PSxG of 0.97. Itt was a certain goal when it left Morelos' boot.
Kent’s goal to nudge Rangers ahead was also top drawer. Before he swung a boot at the ball the xG recorded was 0.07, but that jumped up to 0.70 as soon as he made contact. It was a precise finish right into the corner.
Morelos’ second of the evening was just as impressive when he got on the end of a lofted Borna Barisic cross to nod the ball past Sam Walker.
A look at the pass network highlights just how more dominant Rangers were in the second half, the story of Beale’s tenure so far.
We can see the team were camped slightly higher up the pitch with either full-back more heavily involved.
READ MORE: How Ryan Kent's Rangers freedom 'spooked' Kilmarnock's defensive plan
If we compare that with Kilmarnock’s pass network, it gives us an indication of just how much control Rangers enjoyed. Aside from the opening quarter of an hour, the Ayrshire side struggled to impose themselves on Beale’s men.
We know how important both flanks are in a Beale team and, again, the pressure map shows where much of Rangers’ pressing took place.
The impressive Kent made the most pressures (18) followed by Scott Arfield and John Lundstram (11).
All in all, this was a deserved victory for Rangers even though the start and closing few minutes weren’t up to scratch. What we can see though is Beale’s tactics and playing style are beginning to show, while certain players who had underperformed in the first half of the season are starting to produce the goods.
Rugby Park has been a notoriously difficult place for Rangers to go in recent seasons, so any win should be welcomed.
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