Rangers suck any joy out of Ibrox on day of ‘celebration’ as eerie silence and Union Bears stand-off says it all

The visit of Motherwell on the maiden day of spring was supposed to be one of positivity: the first home match since the axe fell on Philippe Clement as manager, interim boss and club legend Barry Ferguson’s first game in charge at Ibrox, captain James Tavernier’s 500th appearance in blue and Armed Forces Day, always a ringed date in the Rangers calendar.

Despite the early nature of his tenure, Ferguson and his coaching team of Issame Charai, Neil McCann, Billy Dodds and Allan McGregor must take culpability for the way Rangers were deployed up against Michael Wimmer’s enterprising Motherwell side. The flat 4-4-2 looked antiquated up against a dynamic 3-5-2. Rangers were suffocated by a mixture of high and low pressing and lacked any sort of invention in the middle of the pitch. For the second game in a row, Rangers went 2-0 down.

This will all sting Ferguson significantly given how much he loves this club. The 47-year-old was given a rousing reception as he walked out on to the Ibrox pitch pre-match. Moments before, Taverner was presented with an award by John Greig – celebrated as the greatest ever Rangers – for making his 500th appearance for the club. Thank goodness it was done pre-match.

An afternoon of mild celebration turned into misery for Rangers. It was the opposite in the far corner of Ibrox, a pocket of Motherwell fans partying wildly to the tune of Twist And Shout at the full-time whistle. This was quite the statement win for Wimmer in only his third game in charge.

The German’s team did a proper number on Rangers in the first half. Their back-three were resolute and an energetic midfield five were too clever for their Rangers counterparts. Luke Armstrong and Tom Sparrow had them 2-0 up at the half-hour mark and while Rangers’ goal on 55 minutes made many fear a nervy ending for them, the pressure put upon them was sporadic.

Motherwell won at Ibrox this time last year to put a spear through Rangers’ title hopes. Wimmer was pleased with the bravery his players showed on the ball and the way they dug in. This result moves them into the top six above Hearts, who play on Sunday against Hibs, and eases any concerns of being sucked into a relegation battle.

Ferguson left Clinton Nsiala, the centre-half he hooked after half-an-hour at Kilmarnock, out of the matchday squad altogether, with Tavernier deployed at centre-half and Ridvan Yilmaz at right-back. On paper it was an attack-minded line-up with Cyriel Dessers and Hamza Igamane up top, but in reality Rangers’ play was only offensive on the eye. Passes were misplaced too often. There was very little creativity.

Motherwell’s opener on nine minutes was borne out of Rangers’ errors as much as anything else. The ball moved back towards Dan Casey after Kai Andrews dispossessed Dessers. The Irish defender’s shot was spilled sloppily by goalkeeper Jack Butland and Armstrong followed up to net. The flag went up for offside but a VAR check overruled it. The Carlisle loanee has now scored against both sides of the Old Firm.

Ferguson held a pow-wow with Tavernier, Nicolas Raskin, Jefte and Mohamed Diomande during a break in play. It did little to change the flow of the game. Sparrow shot into side netting from a narrow angle on 24 minutes and Ibrox grew increasingly restless.

The boos came on the half-hour mark. The move started with Tavernier giving the ball away. Lennon Miller shuttled it right to Callum Slattery, then out to Sparrow, who dispatched a really cool finish into the bottom corner.

“Get Dessers tae ****,” shrieked a Rangers fan behind the press box. He wasn’t the problem on this occasion, although he spurned a good chance three minutes later when volleying into the side-netting.

The half ended with a comical shot from the completely ineffective Ianis Hagi trundling wide to a mixture of giggles and jeers. He was one of three players hooked at the interval – including the out-of-sorts Igamane, who is now nine games without a goal.

Dessers slammed home from close range after Casey failed to deal with a Yilmaz ball into the box on 55 minutes and that ought to have sounded the cavalry charge, especially as Motherwell were clearly running on fumes. Wimmer therefore deserves immense credit for making a triple sub on the hour mark that replenished his team’s energy levels. The quality of Rangers’ play dipped dramatically between 60 and 75 minutes.

Dessers did have a chip ruled out for offside on 79 minutes but Motherwell did not have to survive too many scares. Rangers’ best moment came on 86 minutes when a Casey clearance fell to Tavernier inside the penalty box. He would have been a fitting hero but his shot was slashed over the bar and with it into the sky went Rangers’ chances of a leveller. Rangers chalked up a third successive home defeat for the first time since 2012.

There were not that many boos at full-time; most Rangers fans had left. Those that remained stayed eerily silent. Tavernier corralled his despondent comrades and told them to applaud the loyal fans. In front of the Union Bears, they stood stoically as the flak rained down.

Such a dishevelled mess of a team should fear the white-hot atmosphere of Istanbul on Thursday night when they face Fenerbahce in the first leg of their last-16 Europa League clash. Under Clement, they found sanctuary in Europe, saving their best for the continent. Ferguson and his merry band of coaches must hope the same happens to them.