Rangers have reached the Premier Sports Cup quarter-finals with a 2-0 win over Hibernian, easing the pressure on under-fire head coach Russell Martin.
Nicolas Raskin and Bojan Miovski scored the goals that secured a place in Sunday’s semi-final draw and kept the Ibrox side in the mix for the first domestic silverware of the season.
Ahead of kick-off, hundreds of Rangers fans had gathered to protest at the Ibrox front gates, calling for the sacking of Martin and chief executive Patrick Stewart following the team’s worst start to a league campaign in 47 years.
Chairman Andrew Cavenagh, who has backed Martin, was at Ibrox to watch as the team looked for their first win since defeating League One side Alloa Athletic in the last round of the cup competition.
Despite Cavenagh’s support for the head coach, many saw the match as a ‘must-win’ for Martin, and the head coach made two changes to his team ahead of kick-off.
Derek Cornelius came in to replace the injured Nasser Djiga while Nico Raskin, who had been exiled from the first team squad in recent weeks, was brought in to replace Connor Barron.
There were plenty of empty seats at Ibrox as fans showed their feelings on the dismal start to the season, and many of those who were in attendance booed Martin before the action started.
They saw their team start positively but play was delayed in the 11th minute when Rangers ultras threw coloured balls on to the pitch in another protest and drew attention to another banner calling for Martin’s sacking.
The mood worsened briefly in the 18th minute when Hibs celebrated after Martin Boyle raced through and slipped the ball past Jack Butland and into the bottom corner of the net. A VAR review ruled the goal out for handball though, and Rangers had a reprieve.
The hosts were enjoying the lions’ share of possession but struggled to create in the final third but made a breakthrough five minutes before the break.
James Tavernier swung in a cross that Raskin flicked on and into the far corner of the net, celebrating by tapping the badge on his shirt as he gestured to fans.
Just before half-time, Ranegrs doubled their lead and took real command of the tie. Raskin played in Mikey Moore and his shot was turned away, only for Miovski to pounce and stab home a close-range finish.
In the second half Hibs pushed to get a foothold in the game, and had a chance that Kieron Bowie hit high and wide but Rangers looked dangerous and Grant Hanley had to clear a Miovski shot off the line to prevent his side going three down.
Miovski then had a goal chopped off for offside before both sides made changes to bring in fresh legs after what had been a fast-paced encounter.
Hibs’ substitutes couldn’t effect change and the clock ticked down to the final whistle without much further incident. The biggest cheer of the second half came for Raskin being named as player of the match on his return to the fold.
Rangers now join St Mirren and Motherwell in the pot for the semi-final draw, with Partick Thistle or Celtic to join the trio before the Hampden fixtures are confirmed.
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