A Cyriel Dessers double took Rangers past Hearts in the Scottish Gas Scottish Cup semi-final to set up an Old Firm final.
The enigmatic Gers striker slid in the opener after five minutes and then sealed the victory in the 78th minute for a 2-0 win, leaving the Tynecastle club still searching for their first win over the Ibrox side at Hampden Park.
For the most part, it was a far from sparkling performance from Philippe Clement’s side who have gone off the boil in recent weeks.
Nevertheless, Rangers will meet Celtic in the May 25 final at the national stadium by which time we will know which of the Old Firm clubs have won their cinch Premiership title race, which the Hoops are leading by three points with five fixtures remaining.
Both sides had a lot to live up to after Saturday’s epic semi-final between Celtic and Aberdeen which the Hoops won 6-5 on penalties after a 3-3 draw but in the event it had less excitement and less quality.
The Jambos had lost four times to Rangers this season, once in the Viaplay Cup semi-final at the national stadium, and had not beaten the Light Blues in their last 17 attempts.
The statistics – but not Rangers’ recent form – pointed to another Gers victory.
The Ibrox side went into the game with just two wins in eight in all competitions and the pressure was on Clement and his players.
The Belgian boss boldly omitted Connor Goldson, who had played in 48 of Rangers’ 52 games this season, with Leon Balogun, Mohamed Diomande, Rabbi Matondo and Dessers returning.
Hearts, sitting in third place in the league with one defeat in seven, showed three changes with Stephen Kingsley, Alan Forrest and Kenneth Vargas starting.
Dessers missed the first chance in the third minute when he knocked a cross from Abdallah Sima over the bar as Tynecastle defender Frankie Kent challenged.
However, when Gers midfielder Todd Cantwell set him up inside the Gorgie box he confidently dragged the ball to his left past Nathaniel Atkinson and steered it low past veteran Jambos keeper Craig Gordon for his 18th of the season.
The goal settled the Ibrox men but they suffered a blow after just 15 minutes when winger Ross McCausland replaced the injured Sima.
The change seemed to disrupt Rangers and keeper Jack Butland had to make terrific saves from Forrest and Kent in quick succession, although Kent appeared offside at his close-range effort.
The Gorgie side began to exert more control towards the interval, pushing Rangers backwards and in the 51st minute Vargas robbed hesitating Gers defender John Souttar on the touchline and drove into the box but there were enough Light Blue jerseys back to defend.
The Edinburgh side were in control.
Hearts brought on Dexter Lembikisa, Barrie McKay and Yutaro Oda for Forrest, Jorge Grant and Atkinson just on the hour mark before Fabio Silva took over from the ineffective Matondo, before Dessers could not set himself for a shot after taking a Cantwell pass 10 yards from goal.
In the 73rd minute Hearts skipper Lawrence Shankland hit the side-netting with a header as the Tynecastle men piled forward.
However, in a swift Gers attack, Dessers settled the tie.
A powerful run by Cantwell had the Gorgie defence backpedalling and when he laid the ball off to the Gers striker his first shot was blocked by Gordon but he made no mistake when collecting the rebound.
With two minutes remaining Dessers set up Silva for a tap-in but the Portuguese attacker somehow managed to fall over the ball six yards out before Butland made a fantastic save to ensure there were no late Rangers nerves, with time for Dessers to miss another opportunity on the break.
Havertz: Arsenal 'ready for the fight' in Premier League title race
Kai Havertz says Arsenal are "ready for the fight" as they aim to close the gap on Premier League leaders Liverpool.
The Gunners are in second place and nine points adrift of the Reds, who have only dropped five under Arne Slot after the opening 13 matches of this campaign.
Mikel Arteta's side will hope to reduce the deficit when they welcome Manchester United to the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday, while Liverpool travel to St James' Park to face Newcastle United.
Arsenal have been runners-up to Manchester City in each of the last two Premier League seasons, and Havertz is confident they will be in contention once more this time around.
"It's still in the first part of the season and a lot can happen," he said. "For me personally, I think how much tougher the Premier League gets year by year.
"Liverpool, all of a sudden, are performing at the highest level week in, week out. I have to give credit to them, for sure. [There are] lots of games to play, points to get, so we will be ready for the fight.
"There are still a lot of things in the team that we can develop and be better at, and I'm sure the next couple of years are going to be great for us. I think everyone will be ready for it."
Arsenal are full of momentum, having won each of their last three matches across all competitions, while scoring 13 goals along the way.
The Gunners only managed 12 in their previous nine games, with Martin Odegaard missing seven of those, but Havertz believes he and his team-mates have enjoyed the benefits of the skipper's recent return from injury.
"For me, it's quite nice! He's just magic," the forward said. "He makes everything so calm and easy on the pitch, has the confidence to turn games around on his own.
"Even in bad moments, he takes the ball and does something with it. He never shies away. He's a very important player for us."
Tottenham must bolster attacking options in January, says Postecoglou
Ange Postecoglou said that Tottenham must make signings during the transfer window to strengthen their attacking options.
Tottenham find themselves seventh in the Premier League after 13 games this season, but have been unable to find consistency with results thus far.
But their form has not been helped by injuries in the forward areas, with Richarlison and Wilson Odobert out of action until next year with respective hamstring issues.
Dominic Solanke, who missed Tottenham's 1-1 draw with Fulham on Sunday, is expected to feature against former side Bournemouth on Thursday, however.
Despite those injuries, Postecoglou's side top the scoring charts in the top-flight this term with 28 goals, but the Spurs boss said he is in need of attacking reinforcements.
"With Richy, it has been frustrating because I see the potential in him and, to be fair, when he’s been fit he’s always made an impact," Postecoglou said.
"That’s what you kind of hold on to, but there’s no doubt we need some bolstering in that front third over the next couple of transfer windows."
“Dom coming in has been great, but again we can’t overload him either, because ultimately, even if he stays fit and nothing happens, performance will invariably drop if his energy levels drop. So it’s something we’re aware of and need to plan for."
Cristian Romero is also unavailable for Thursday's game, adding to the absences of Micky van de Ven, Guglielmo Vicario and the suspended Rodrigo Bentancur.
Tottenham's squad is likely to be stretched once again during December, with eight games coming up this month.
Following their trip to Bournemouth, they take on Chelsea, Southampton, Liverpool, Nottingham Forest and Wolves in the Premier League.
In between those league games, they face Rangers in the Europa League as well as a quarter-final EFL Cup tie against Manchester United.
"It's a Thursday Sunday cycle for us pretty consistently," he added.
"Monday is recovery day for the lads and yesterday training with the guys who didn't play the majority of the game.
"They've all recovered well, no issues from [Fulham] and we're ready to go for a big game tomorrow."
But up first for Tottenham is a trip to the south coast against Andoni Iraola's in-form Bournemouth side, who beat Wolves 4-2 in their last Premier League encounter.
And Postecoglou will have confidence of returning to winning ways at the Vitality Stadium given their recent meetings with the Cherries.
Tottenham have won 10 of their 14 Premier League games against Bournemouth (D2 L2) – of the sides they’ve faced at least 10 times in the competition, only against Swansea (79%) do they have a higher win rate.
Along with that, each of their last five top-flight away wins have been to nil, including a 4-0 victory at reigning champions Manchester City last time out.
Spurs, however, haven’t won any of their last 14 when conceding on the road (D5 L9), since a 2-1 win at Crystal Palace in October 2023, and Postecoglou is expecting another difficult task away from home.
"A tough challenge, not just of late but from last year. They came here and were really aggressive with their football and especially at their place," Postecoglou concluded.
"They've beaten City and Arsenal at their place. They are one of those sides where they have real consistency in performance and approach, so you know that you're in for a battle. I'm really looking forward to it."
Shaw 'devastated' by yet another injury setback
Manchester United and England defender Luke Shaw has said that he is devastated after suffering the latest in a long line of injury issues.
Shaw made his first appearance of the season coming off the bench in the 1-1 draw away to Ipswich Town on 24 November, which was Ruben Amorim's first game in charge.
He has since made another substitute appearance against Bodo/Glimt in the Europa League last week and on Sunday in the 4-0 home win over Everton.
Now a new injury, which is not thought to be related to his original calf issue, will keep him out for a few weeks.
"It's hurting a lot having to write this as I really thought I had got through my recent struggles and was on a positive path going forwards, but unfortunately I've had a small setback," Shaw wrote in an emotional statement on his Instagram account.
"I've been through a lot and had a lot of ups and downs, but this has definitely been my toughest period. I'm absolutely devastated, and it's extremely tough to come to terms with reality at this moment in time.
"I understand there is going to be people frustrated, angry, disappointed and I understand all that. There is no one feeling that more than me at this moment in time.
"But what I can promise is I will do everything I can to come back better soon to help this club achieve its ambitions this season. Thank you to everyone for the support. It really doesn't go unnoticed, and I really do appreciate it."
Prior to his appearance at Ipswich, Shaw had not played since England's 2-1 defeat in the Euro 2024 final.
That was his only start of the tournament, while his last start for Manchester United came in a 2-1 victory away to Luton Town in February.
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