Reo Hatate secured Celtic a narrow 1-0 victory over second-placed Aberdeen, sending them seven points clear at the top of the Scottish Premiership table.

The Japanese international struck in the 78th minute, meeting Greg Taylor's pass over the top to rifle the winner into the bottom corner.

In a tight first half, Duk was denied by Kasper Schmeichel before Alistair Johnson's header was turned narrowly past the post by Jamie McGrath.

Paulo Bernardo thought he had given Celtic the lead when he scored directly from a corner, though the goal was ruled out due to a foul on Ross Doohan.

Ester Sokler had the opportunity to equalise late on, only for Cameron Carter-Vickers to turn his effort over the bar as Celtic kept an 11th clean sheet of the season. 

Meanwhile, Rangers continued their recent run of fine form with a 6-0 thrashing of Kilmarnock.

It was their second win by that scoreline this season, having also beaten Ross County on matchday three, with James Tavernier opening the scoring in the 37th minute with his first goal of the campaign.

Philippe Clement's side turned up the heat after the break, with two goals in two minutes from Danilo and Hamza Igamane putting them 3-0 up.

Vaclav Cerny then drove a reverse shot into the back of the net shortly after the hour mark before substitute Cyriel Dessers scored two first-time goals to move Rangers just four points behind Aberdeen with a game in hand. 

Philippe Clement believes Rangers are continually improving after their hard-fought 1-0 away win over St. Johnstone on Sunday.

Former Rangers midfielder Jason Holt turned into his own net just past the hour as that own goal handed Clement's side their first away win in the Scottish Premiership since September.

It capped an improved week for Clement, whose side thrashed Nice in the Europa League on Thursday to move a step closer to the knockout stages.

Speculation had also grown over the future of under-fire Clement, though the Belgian believes his team are on the right track.

"At the end, it's also crucial to not concede chances," said Clement in his post-match press conference. "We have for the second time in a row only one shot on target from the opponent.

"Last week it was a goal. Now not. And we need to continue in that way, keeping clean sheets and being defensively strong.

"I don't speak only about the defence, it's the whole team working hard for that. I see a lot of improvements with all the squad in what they are doing. It's now continuing all these things.

"What we talked about the last weeks and months. The mistakes we made to take it out of the game, you see it less and less, and then to grow like that.

"And then in the final third to sometimes have better positioning, to sometimes have better decision-making also. It's still a work in progress."

Victory moved Rangers 11 points behind leaders Celtic and seven behind second-placed Aberdeen, who were held to a 1-1 draw away at Hearts on Sunday.

Leighton Clarkson opened the scoring in the first half, only for Aberdeen captain Nicky Devlin to turn into his own net after the interval.

That result left Aberdeen without a win in their last three games, though manager Jimmy Thelin vowed to get his side back on course.

"You can see the players have the fight for each other," Thelin told BBC Scotland. "They're really trying. I liked their approach, that they run so much. They keep running.

"We also need to find the rhythm again, the dynamic of the team. We have the quality, we just need to find the rhythm of the game again.

"Sometimes when the dynamic is there, you lose the ball and the opponents get the momentum too easily. That's the part we have to improve, because we have done it.

"We've taken points away from Hibernian and Hearts this week, that's a tough week. We want to get to Pittodrie and try again."

Philippe Clement believes his Rangers side produced their "best performance of the season" in the 4-1 thrashing of Nice in the Europa League on Thursday. 

Rangers stunned the Ligue 1 outfit with three first-half strikes as Vaclav Cerny, Mohamed Diomande and Hamza Igamane took advantage of some poor defending by the hosts. 

Igamane notched his second of the game nine minutes after the restart, with the hosts pulling a goal back in the 83rd minute courtesy of Badredine Bouanani's stunning free-kick. 

The result moved Rangers up to eighth in the 36-team standings, leapfrogging Tottenham into the automatic spots late on thanks to Mats Hummels' equaliser for Roma. 

They also scored four or more goals in an away major European game for just the eighth time, with this the first time they’d done so since a 4-2 win at Borussia Dortmund 2022.

"We did big performances in Bucharest and Malmo too but knowing the level of this this is probably the best performance of the season. The season is still young," Clement said. 

"Young squad, new players, many on the pitch today who have not been at the club for long. We have become stronger and stronger."

Clement showered praise on two-goal Igamane, who impressed on his first start in the competition with top scorer Cyriel Dessers dropped to the bench. 

The Moroccan grabbed the assist for Cerny's opener, while he also ended the contest with the most touches in the opposition box (eight) along with creating more chances (three) than any of his team-mates. 

"He came in with an injury and missed preparation. He doesn't have experience at this level," Clement added. 

"We're working hard with him to make him stronger but also technically doing the right things for the team.

"I saw the good things the last few weeks and that's why I gave him the chance today.

"It's my job to give chances and see what the player can bring but you never know with young players. You need characters, you can't be affected by the big occasion."

Rangers' attention now turns to the Scottish Premiership, aiming to bounce back from their 1-1 draw with Dundee United last time out. 

Clement's side find themselves third in the table, 11 points behind rivals Celtic, and the Rangers boss believes their win over Nice can be the catalyst for their domestic campaign.

 "We need to win. That's clear. We need to perform well on Sunday, but also on Wednesday and then at the weekend again.

"I don't want to see players in satisfaction mode, I want to see hungry players who want to be better and better."

Rangers took a huge step in their quest for the knockout stages of the Europa League after comfortably dispatching Nice 4-1, with Hamza Igamane scoring twice.

The result moved Rangers up to ninth in the new 36-team league standings and just outside the automatic qualification places on goal difference with three games remaining. 

After surviving an early VAR review, which saw three separate incidents looked at, Rangers took the lead in the 35th minute through Vaclav Cerny, with his strike aided by a deflection from Pablo Rosario. 

Rosario was involved again in Rangers' second, allowing Dujon Sterling's searching pass to go over his head, which resulted in Mohamed Diomande stealing in and brilliantly lifting the ball over Marcin Bulka. 

It got even better for Philippe Clement's side in first-half stoppage time when Mohamed Abdelmonem's poor back pass was picked up by Igamane, who finished comfortably after rounding Bulka. 

Nice's defensive woes continued shortly after the break when Rosario saw his pass cut out by Igamane, who powered towards goal and slotting his second of the game into the bottom left corner. 

Badredine Bouanani's stunning free-kick seven minutes from time reduced the deficit, though Rangers should have scored their fifth soon after, only for substitute Cyriel Dessers to fire wide from close range. 

Data Debrief: Igamane shows his worth

Ahead of kick-off, eyebrows were raised when top scorer Dessers was named among the substitutes, but Rangers were able to showcase the plethora of attacking options at their disposal, none more so than Igamane. 

He grabbed two goals and an assist, while also recording more touches in the opposition box (eight) and creating more chances (three) than any of his team-mates. His expected goals (xG) tally of 0.53 was a total only bettered by Dessers (0.74) for Rangers.

Igamane also became the youngest Rangers player (22 years, 26 days) to score two goals in an away major European game since David McPherson netted four against Valletta in Malta back in September 1983, aged 19.

Rangers scored four or more goals in an away major European game for the eighth time, with this the first time they had done so since a 4-2 win at Borussia Dortmund in February 2022.

Philippe Clement was left frustrated following Rangers' 1-1 draw with Dundee United, but acknowledged he "cannot ask much more" from his players.

The Gers dropped their first points at Ibrox in the Scottish Premiership season, and could trail leaders Celtic by 11 if the Hoops beat Hearts later on Saturday.

Sam Dalby's 36th-minute header put the visitors in front, though Vaclav Cerny's smart finish levelled the contest midway through the second half.

The hosts pushed for the winning goal, with Ianis Hagi and Robin Propper denied by United goalkeeper Jack Walton later on.

Yet, despite over 70% of the possession and nine shots on target to their opponents' one, Clement's side were forced to settle for a share of the spoils.

"We need to reward ourselves, and we need to play like we played in the second half, 90 minutes long," he told Rangers TV. "Like that, you strangle teams like you did in the past, and that's the football I want to see.

"I cannot say anything about commitment in the second half, the team pushed until the last seconds to score a winner, and the goalkeeper made some excellent saves. The team was not rewarded in that way.

"It's frustrating to lose points in a game where you face one shot on target, and it's a goal. Last season, we won these games and, now, you lose points, so we need to get back to the level of before.

"They fought until the end. We had really good opportunities. You cannot ask much more, only to score the second goal. Then, you have a totally different feeling after the game."

Meanwhile, Jack Butland was left to rue what might have been, with the goalkeeper insisting he and his team-mates must up their game.

"It can't take until the second half to get going," he said. "We've got to be better. We've given away too many easy goals against teams that are just looking to hang onto something.

"It's not a great result at all. It feels like a loss. These games have got to be wins. It's not what the fans deserve from the game today. We need to do much more."

Rangers boss Philippe Clement called on his team to show greater ruthlessness after they were made to work for a 1-0 win over Hearts in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday.

Cyriel Dessers put the Gers ahead after just six minutes at Ibrox, diverting James Tavernier's effort past visiting goalkeeper Craig Gordon.

However, Clement's team failed to build on that quick start and inched over the line amid a tense atmosphere, moving back to within nine points of pacesetters Celtic and Aberdeen.

Speaking after the game, Clement acknowledged his players are fatigued after a gruelling run of fixtures but added they must start taking their chances.

"We made too many wrong choices with the ball and became too sloppy," Clement said. 

"It's the end of a very busy period, though, with a lot of travelling and they're all human beings, not robots.

"We missed scoring the second goal and we know that until you get that goal the other team stays in the game, so I want us to kill the belief of the opponent faster.

 "I'm very satisfied with the result and the deserved three points. We didn't show the same quality in the second half and we didn't finish off the game. We had a few chances, but it stays nervous until the last second."

Rangers host Dundee United after the international break, while Celtic visit Hearts and Aberdeen travel to St. Mirren.

Philippe Clement explained captain James Tavernier was omitted from Rangers' 1-1 Europa League draw with Olympiacos due to fear of him playing too many games.

The 33-year-old skipper was utilised as a second-half substitute in a game where Cyriel Dessers cancelled out Ayoub El Kaabi's opener at the Karaiskakis Stadium on Thursday.

It was a call that raised a few eyebrows given the criticism Tavernier has faced this season, but Clement said it was just about managing the experienced full-back's minutes.

In quotes reported by BBC Sport, Clement said: "That's never an easy decision, but I want more than one captain in the group.

"If you come at a certain age you can't play 60 games at the same level. We knew that before the season. It's about competition for spots.

"It's about one team, winning together. That's Rangers - one team, one family, going for one goal."

Rangers now have seven points from four games in Europe's secondary competition, sitting just outside the top eight in the table.

Clement, however, was disappointed not to travel home with the win despite being impressed with the performance.

"A very strong performance as a team, sticking to the plan, being very disciplined and using the spaces," he added.

"Disappointed we didn't win the game, that's the next step we need to take. But I saw a lot of positive things and I need to praise the whole team for that.

"I don't want players happy with a point. We went for the three points and that's the mentality I want to see against any opponent.

"Our midfield was massive today. Our defence was really solid. Jack [Butland] didn't have to make many saves."

Rangers are now unbeaten in their last five away matches in the Europa League (W2 D3), equalling their longest such run in the competition’s history (also five unbeaten between October 2020 – March 2021).

Up next in the competition is Ligue 1 side Nice, who drew 2-2 with Enschede on Thursday. 

Cyriel Dessers earned Rangers a priceless point at the home of the Europa Conference League winners, with his strike securing a 1-1 draw with Olympiacos. 

The result left Rangers just outside the top eight in the Europa League table, while Olympiacos are one place further back, having picked up seven points from their four games. 

Dessers, however, squandered a golden opportunity in the 11th minute after being sent through on goal, but could only fire his effort at the legs of Konstantinos Tzolakis. 

Tzolakis was again on hand to deny the Rangers striker six minutes later, producing a stunning save to tip his effort wide as the Scottish side ended the half in the ascendency. 

But their good work was undone shortly after the restart when Chiquinho's smart backwards header found Ayoub El Kaabi, who swivelled and rifled the ball into the roof of the net. 

However, Rangers responded eight minutes later, with Dessers finally getting the better of Tzolakis. The Nigerian skipped beyond the challenge of Panagiotis Retsos before curling the ball home. 

Both sides pushed to try and find the winning goal in the closing stages, but the spoils were shared at the Stadio Georgios Karaiskaki. 

Data Debrief: Oh I do love playing away

Rangers can leave Greece happy with a point, though could have returned to Ibrox with all three after a strong showing against Olympiacos. 

They ended the contest with an expected goals (xG) total of 1.13 compared to their opponents' 0.68, despite having three less shots throughout the contest. 

But their impressive form away from home in Europe continued. They are now unbeaten in their last five away matches in the Europa League (W2 D3), equalling their longest such run in the competition’s history (also five unbeaten between October 2020 – March 2021).

Dessers also impressed for Philippe Clement's side. He has been directly involved in 10 goals across 13 away appearances in major European competitions (eight goals, two assists). 

Phillipe Clement said Rangers' performance against Motherwell must serve as a reference for the rest of their season after they teed up a Scottish League Cup final clash with Celtic.

Rangers fought back for a 2-1 victory on Sunday, with Cyriel Dessers and Nedim Bajrami on target one day after Celtic trounced Aberdeen 6-0 in the first semi-final.

Dessers converted Connor Barron's cross to level things up in the 49th minute, then Bajrami saw his strike deflect home nine minutes from time to ease the pressure on Clement.

The Gers have endured a difficult Premiership season to date and trail rivals Celtic, who they will face in the League Cup final on December 15, by nine points in the table.

Clement, however, believes they can achieve big things if they replicate the performance they produced at Hampden Park on a regular basis.

"We can go where we want to be, which is the final," he told Premier Sports.

"We had that amazing feeling together with the fans last season and we can battle for that again. 

"This needs to be also a reference game for this squad, for this new squad.

"To do what we've been doing a lot last season, to dig in and in every situation to keep our belief, to keep on going, to keep on fighting and to break the wall if we go behind... 

"This can be a massive game at the end of the season to have this one as a reference. I want to see, every three days, this mentality."

Shayden Morris' winner helped Aberdeen defeat Rangers 2-1 to maintain their unbeaten run and stay level on points with Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premiership.

The hosts took the lead through Nicky Devlin after 31 minutes at the Pittodrie Stadium before Nedim Bajrami's individual brilliance saw Rangers back on level terms 18 minutes into the second half.

Celebrations soon resumed in Aberdeen as substitute Morris crashed in the winner 11 minutes later.

Victory sees Jimmy Thelin's side move nine points clear of Rangers, who sit in third, as they remain level on 28 points with Celtic, only behind on goal difference.

Celtic continued to add to that superior goal difference with a 2-0 win over Dundee at Celtic Park.

Two goals inside 10 minutes in the second half from Alistair Johnston and Arne Engels gave them a routine victory to keep them unbeaten at the top of the table.

Celtic returned to the top of the Scottish Premiership table with a routine 3-0 victory at Motherwell, putting them back above Aberdeen on goal difference.

Brendan Rodgers' Bhoys had been knocked off the summit by the Dons' 1-0 win over Dundee United on Saturday, but they responded by easing to their eighth victory in nine games at Fir Park.

Luke McCowan steered in the opener on his first Celtic start, after Lennon Miller had twice struck the woodwork in the early stages.

Stand-in captain Alistair Johnston then ghosted in to score their second at the back post shortly before the hour mark, with Adam Idah adding a third before Motherwall's Liam Gordon was sent off in stoppage time.

That result piled the pressure on Rangers, who could have ended the weekend nine points adrift of the top two, but they claimed a hard-fought 2-1 victory over St Mirren at Ibrox to stay within six.

Mohamed Diomande's powerful close-range finish put the Gers ahead, but Alex Gogic rose to nod in a St Mirren equaliser midway through the first half.

Vaclav Cerny spared their blushes, though, as he scored the winner following good work from Cyriel Dessers in the 69th minute. 

Rangers go to second-placed Aberdeen, who are yet to lose this season, for a huge fixture in the title race on Wednesday.

In Sunday's other Premiership game, teenager James Wilson struck three minutes from time to rescue a point for Hearts in a 1-1 Edinburgh Derby draw at Hibernian.

Mykola Kuharevich had put Hibs ahead on the rebound after Marvin Ekpiteta headed against the crossbar just after the hour mark, but Wilson got the final touch to divert James Penrice's long throw home with stoppage time looming.

The result keeps Hibs rooted to the foot of the table with six points, though they are only behind 11th-placed Hearts on goal difference and still have a game in hand to come.

Vaclav Cerny shone as Rangers cruised to a commanding 4-0 victory over FCSB in the Europa League on Thursday.

The Czech winger scored twice and provided an assist for Tom Lawrence, while Hamza Igamane was also on target during a dominant performance by the hosts at Ibrox.

Nicolas Raskin had already had a long-range effort pushed away when Rangers broke through in the 10th minute. Cerny drove down the right flank and cut the ball back for Lawrence, whose first-time shot bounced in beyond FCSB goalkeeper Stefan Tarnovanu.

Cerny doubled the lead just after the half-hour mark, pouncing on loose possession by the visitors before bending into the bottom-left corner from 20 yards out.

The Czech grabbed his second in the 55th minute. A lovely exchange of passes released him, and he ran half the length of the pitch unchallenged before cutting inside and slotting home.

Igamane put the icing on the cake 18 minutes from time. Connor Barron robbed FCSB of possession and found the substitute, who drilled into the bottom-right corner.

Data Debrief: Cerny matches Morelos as Rangers claim biggest Europa victory

Cerny became only the second Rangers player to be directly involved in three or more goals during a single Europa League match, after Alfredo Morelos against Royal Antwerp in February 2021.

Registering 23 shots - their highest total in a single Europa League game - the hosts claimed their first European victory by four or more goals since beating Hapoel Tel Aviv 4-0 in the UEFA Cup in February 2007. It was also their biggest Europa League win since the competition's rebrand in 2009-10.

As for FCSB, they have now lost each of their last eight European matches against British opposition by a combined scoreline of 24-2, conceding three or more times in six of those eight games.

Marley Watkins struck a late winner as Rangers lost further ground at the top of the Scottish Premiership table, falling to a deserved 1-0 defeat at Kilmarnock. 

Rangers went into Sunday's game six points adrift of Celtic and Aberdeen, after the two pacesetters played out an entertaining 2-2 draw on Saturday.

But they never looked likely to close that gap as they produced a flat performance at Rugby Park.

They were indebted to goalkeeper Jack Butland as he made a fine save to deny Watkins early on, while Matty Kennedy was just unable to turn an inviting Corrie Ndaba cross home.

Former Rangers shot-stopper Robby McCrorie had a busier second half, pushing a Cyriel Dessers effort away before the Nigerian hit the crossbar from the resulting corner.

Those misses were punished with just three minutes remaining, Watkins outmuscling defender John Souttar from a long ball forward before prodding past Butland.

Data Debrief: Gers fall flat once more

In contrast to the lightning starts Celtic and Aberdeen have made to 2024-25, Rangers have looked laboured in the early weeks of the season and that was the case again on Sunday.

They only mustered three shots on target throughout the 90 minutes, the same amount as their hosts, and they have now been shut out in three of their eight Premiership games this term – only St Johnstone and Ross County (four apiece) have failed to net more often.

Rangers got back on track in the Scottish Premiership as Vaclav Cerny scored both goals in a 2-0 victory over St. Johnstone.

Philippe Clement's side were thrashed 4-1 by Lyon in Thursday's Europa League clash at Ibrox Stadium, where they made amends with a routine domestic victory on Sunday.

Cerny broke the deadlock 11 minutes before the interval, cutting inside and curling a sumptuous effort into the bottom-left corner of Ross Sinclair's goal.

Czech Republic winger Cerny added Rangers' second, and doubled his account, just before the hour after combining with returning midfielder Ianis Hagi before producing a right-footed finish into the far corner.

Hagi – who had not played a first-team game for over a year due to a contract dispute – was sent off with nine minutes left though, following a VAR review for a high challenge on Benjamin Kimpioka's standing ankle.

Rangers still recorded a comfortable triumph to move back within five points of the league-leading Celtic, who are clear of Aberdeen on goal difference, heading into the October international break.

Data Debrief: Defensive recovery after Lyon pain

Rangers were well off the pace in the Lyon hammering in which they shipped four goals, though the hosts rediscovered their defensive solidity here.

Clement's men have now won three matches in a row without conceding in the competition for the first time since doing so across January and February last campaign.

It came as no surprise, however, given St. Johnstone have lost each of their last seven away league games against Rangers without scoring a single goal in the process.

Malick Fofana and Alexandre Lacazette each scored twice as Lyon outclassed Rangers 4-1 in the Europa League at Ibrox on Thursday.

Former Arsenal striker Lacazette scored twice before the break after Tom Lawrence had earlier cancelled out Fofana's opener in Glasgow, with the latter also netting again in the second half.

Vaclav Cerny was punished for woefully blazing over the bar when Fofana bent home on the rebound from the hugely impressive Rayan Cherki's shot after 10 minutes.

Lawrence quickly prodded home the equaliser when Cyriel Dessers was denied, but an awful error from Connor Barron led to Fofana laying on a simple finish for Lacazette.

The Frenchman then made it 3-1 with a whipped 25-yard stunner before the break and Fofana poked home Cherki's low cross at the back post to add more gloss shortly after the restart.

Duje Caleta-Car saw a header thunder off the crossbar and Corentin Tolisso had a shot cleared off the line, while substitute Said Benrahma was also denied as Lyon pushed to really emphasise their dominance of proceedings.

Data Debrief: Lyon forwards tormentors in chief

Rangers, who won impressively at Malmo on MD1, just had no answer for the dynamism of a Lyon side who are now two from two and second in the table.

Lacazette was playing his 50th game in the Europa League and scored his 23rd and 24th goals in the competition. Only Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (34) and Aritz Aduriz (26) have scored more since his first appearance in September 2012.

Cherki set up both of Fofana's goals in an excellent display and has six goal involvements in only five Europa League starts (three goals, three assists), while Fofana scored and assisted in the same game for the first time for Lyon.

Rangers have a night to forget and this represented only the first time in the Europa League/UEFA Cup they have conceded four goals at home, and only the third time overall.