Glasgow Rangers kicked off their Europa League campaign in great style with a 2-0 win away from Ibrox against Malmo in Sweden on Thursday night.
Nedim Bajrami opened the scoring for Philippe Clement‘s side in the opening minute of the match, tapping the ball into an empty net after Cyriel Dessers hit the post.
Substitute Ross McCausland doubled the lead in the second half with a terrific, low, left-footed strike into the bottom corner, after reacting first to a loose ball on the edge of the box.
Bajrami, who kicked off the scoring, enjoyed a fantastic evening on his European debut for the Scottish giants on the left of the attacking trident behind Dessers.
Nedim Bajrami’s performance in numbers
Oddly enough, the Albania international’s goal was not the most impressive piece of play from him on the night, as it was a relatively simple finish into an empty net.
His ability to carve open the Malmo defence to create high-quality opportunities for his teammates was the most eye-catching facet of his performance.
Bajrami created a whopping three ‘big chances’ and ended the match without an assist, as Dessers, Vaclav Cerny, and Neraysho Kasanwirjo all spurned huge openings to find the back of the net from his passes.
He was not the only strong performer on the night for Rangers, though, as Mohamed Diomande starred in the middle of the park and put in his best showing of the season so far.
Mohamed Diomande’s best performance so far
The Ivorian dynamo was selected alongside Connor Barron at the base of the midfield for Clement and showcased his quality throughout the match, with his play in and out of possession for the Gers.
Diomande enjoyed his highest pass completion rate (94%) of the 2024/25 campaign in all competitions, as he provided a reliable outlet on the ball for his side to retain possession and recyle play to dominate and dictate the tempo.
The central midfielder, who was awarded a player rating of 8/10 from The Scotsman, also won 64% of his duels – also a season-high – by dominating the Malmo midfield and ensuring that he won the physical battle in midfield.
Instead of being a lightweight presence that allowed the home side to control the game, Diomande cut out opposition attacks to regain the ball for the Light Blues on numerous occassions.
|
Mohamed Diomande |
Vs Malmo |
24/25 Premiership (per game) |
|---|---|---|
|
Pass accuracy |
94% |
83% |
|
Key passes |
2 |
1 |
|
Dribble success rate |
100% |
70% |
|
Duel success rate |
64% |
48% |
|
Tackles + interceptions |
5 |
1.8 |
As you can see in the table above, he outperformed his seasonal averages in the Scottish Premiership in a host of key defensive and offensive metrics.
It was a superb showing from the dynamic midfielder, who buzzed around the pitch to either break up Malmo attacks or piece together forward moves for Rangers, and one that was his best all-round performance of the season so far.
Clement will be hoping for more of the same from the left-footed maestro if the Gers are to be successful in winning silverware between now and May.
