Rangers on the Rise: Are They Missing a Key Ingredient?

Rangers are on fire, boasting an impressive record of 10 wins and 2 draws in their last 12 outings across all competitions. After a convincing 2-0 victory over St Mirren on Saturday, they find themselves just a point shy of the Scottish Premiership leaders. It was a well-earned triumph, highlighting their best-in-league defensive prowess and a respectable attack, yet there’s a nagging feeling they haven’t reached their full potential. In Paisley, Derek McInnes' squad struggled to close out the game despite creating numerous chances. St Mirren nearly capitalized on this, coming close to finding the net in the dying moments. Chris Sutton, a former Celtic striker, pointed out the issues on Sky Sports, noting, "There's still not that element of control. That killer instinct is really important, but they don't control games the way they should. That will be the worry. Eventually that will bite Rangers in the backside." Kris Boyd, who also graced the pitch for Rangers and Scotland, echoed Sutton's sentiments. "They are a good team, but with Rangers teams of the past, that would have been three or four," he remarked. "There is something missing." The match saw Ryan Naderi break the deadlock from the penalty spot, marking his sixth goal in eight league appearances. His strike partner, Kevin Kelsy, squandered several opportunities early in the second half before Dan Neil’s deflected shot sealed the win. Despite having an expected goals tally of 29.8 for the season, Rangers have only managed to find the back of the net 21 times. Injuries to key forwards Youssef Chermiti and Lawrence Shankland explain some of their struggles, but they don’t tell the whole story. Naderi and Kelsy have been commendable, with only two matches since August where neither has scored. However, the midfield and wing players need to step up their game. South Korean winger Kim Min-su has yet to register a goal or assist since his summer transfer from Girona, although he created more chances than anyone else in Saturday's match. Meanwhile, Badredine Bouanani has shown flashes of quality but has been inconsistent with his final product. Against St Mirren, Rangers found themselves in promising positions that often fizzled out due to poor decision-making. McInnes noted, "Loads of chances. It's quite ironic we scored from a penalty and a deflected shot, but some of our work was really clean up until the last part." He emphasized the need for better execution in the final third, stating, "What becomes a good chance could be a brilliant chance if we just take care with the weight of pass and make the right decision. We’ve got to take ownership that we can do better in these moments." Neil acknowledged the ongoing conversation about being more clinical, admitting, "We speak all the time about being more clinical and there were a couple of chances we could have done better with." McInnes, who narrowly missed out on the title with Heart of Midlothian last season, is candid about his expectations. "It's not been perfect," he reflected on the past weeks. "Our fight is with ourselves to keep improving. If we can keep winning and getting those improvements as we go along, there's hopefully more to come from us." If Rangers can harness those improvements, Sutton believes they could become a formidable force. "They seem like a team that have another gear or two, and that will be a worry for the other teams in the league," he concluded.