Sport

Rangers rely on Jelavic's ingenuity

Aberdeen 0 Rangers 1: RANGERS secured only a second win at Pittodrie in eight visits and, with it, the potential for a morale…

EWAN MURRAY at Pittodrie
Thu Apr 14 2011 - 01:00

Aberdeen 0 Rangers 1:RANGERS secured only a second win at Pittodrie in eight visits and, with it, the potential for a morale-boosting weekend. With Celtic on Scottish Cup duty, Rangers can return to the summit of the Premier League with a victory over St Mirren on Saturday, although Walter Smith's side will have played a game more.

Aberdeen had passed up two chances to score before Rangers’s Croatian striker Nikica Jelavic teed the ball up before beating Jamie Langfield with a 16-yard overhead kick.

Rangers had a subsequent penalty claim waved away, rightly it seemed, as Steven Davis tumbled under a Sone Aluko challenge. Aberdeen were unable to trouble the makeshift Rangers defence during the rest of the first half.

Aberdeen’s Chris Maguire should have levelled when clean through on goal, and Josh Magennis saw a close-range header held by Allan McGregor. And Scott Vernon failed to bundle the ball over the Rangers line with 15 minutes to play.

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* Guardian Service

ABERDEEN:Langfield, Young, Diamond, Considine, Smith (Robertson 57), Maguire, Jack, Milsom, Aluko, Vernon, Magennis (Blackman 81). Subs not used:Howard, Vujadinovic, Pawlett, Paton, Shaughnessy. Booked:Diamond.

RANGERS:McGregor, Wylde (Diouf 64), Weir, Whittaker, Papac, Naismith, Davis, Edu, Ness (Hutton 66), Lafferty, Jelavic (Healy 88). Subs not used:Alexander, Fleck, Kerkar. Booked:Ness, Edu.

Referee:C Murry (England).