New boys on fire
Tom Lawrence and Rabbi Matondo were subbed on at the break in this one. And the new boys made an instant impact on the friendly tie. James Tavernier slipped a ball down the line for Matondo. After Cresswell missed the interception, the Welsh winger took a touch into the box. He then played a perfectly waited pass into the path of Lawrence, who was able to run on to the ball and slot home with his first touch of the game. It was a lovely move. Lawrence then played a key role in the second, as he assisted for Kent to slam past Fabianski. Matondo also impressed, as he struck to make it 3-0.
Barisic in the mood
The Croatian has been a superb capture for Rangers and has more than shown his worth over the years. As cliché as the saying goes, he’s very much a ‘confidence player’, though. There have been spells over the past few years where his form has dropped and in turn, his confidence appeared to be on the floor. Tonight, he was very energetic and seemed eager to show why he should be the first choice left-back heading into the new season. With Bassey away to Ajax, this could be a welcome boost for Rangers if Barisic is raring to go ahead of not only the league season, but Champions League qualifiers.
Colak is a unit
Our final point is all about another Croat. Rangers’ new striker is certainly no slouch. He’s big and strong, very aggressive and overall looked relatively sharp. We touched upon his physical stature after the weekend’s match against Blackpool. He’s been drafted in to help boost the forward option, with Alfredo Morelos and Kemar Roofe still on their way back from injury. While he’s more of a target man than both of those players, he did show tonight that he’s very capable of making runs in-behind defenders, getting them facing their own goal. It’ll be interesting to see how he does in domestic action.
