The Romanian sub rifled a simply unstoppable last-gasp leveller to complete a miraculous fightback for his 10-man team at Pittodrie.
Ianis Hagi struck a spectacular stoppage-time equaliser for 10-man Rangers to deny Aberdeen and also delay Celtic’s official clinching of the title.
The Romanian sub rifled a simply unstoppable last-gasp leveller to complete a miraculous fightback for his 10-man team at Pittodrie.
Rangers boss Barry Ferguson took a huge and calculated gamble as he opted to leave out several key men in making nine changes from the starting side which drew with Athletic Bilbao four days previously.
That was done with the second leg in mind, but it looked to have backfired big time as Aberdeen heroes Leighton Clarkson and Pape Gueye struck first-half crackers.
With Ross McCausland also sent-off in that opening period, celebrations were all set to be sparked in both the Granite City and also Glasgow’s East End.
However, Ferguson’s team, against all the odds, turned the match around after the restart. Hamza Igamane gave the under-siege visitors a lifeline just three minutes into second period, but the mountain still seemed too high to scale as the contest ticked into injury-time.
Yet, in the final seconds, Hagi hit Jefte’s lay-off first time beyond keeper Ross Doohan from outside the box for a stunning and unlikely leveller.
It was shattering for Aberdeen. A second win of the season on home soil over the Ibrox outfit appeared inevitable as they took initial charge.
Clarkson’s wonderful free-kick and Gueye’s lethal finish from a brilliant Shayden Morris pick-out had them 2-0 ahead at the break with McCausland already off for two bookings.
It was a bitter blow in their bid for third spot and now their attention turns to Saturday’s Scottish Cup semi-final against Hearts with a sour taste.
Ferguson’s side have their own task in hand. Heading to Bilbao for their Europa League quarter-final second-leg on Thursday night lifted by another show of character and resilience.
It wasn’t a win. And the point leaves them a yearning 15 points behind Celtic with five games to go. With a goal difference which can’t be overturned, it was no cause for joy as the title is still going to Parkhead.
But Hagi’s effort means it is not officially done and that didn’t look likely at half-time.
Thlein’s men were two ahead at the turnaround and cruising. It was deserved as they kept creating opportunities, the first of which fell to Morris, who hit the winner against Rangers on their visit. He spun free into the box only to drag wide with just keeper Liam Kelly to beat.
James Tavernier’s rest lasted just 19 minutes when, after Rafael Fernandes had to go off injured, the skipper entered the fray to take the armband from Connor Barron.
It wasn’t long before he was skinned down the left by Graeme Shinnie who delivered a cross which Dutch defender Mats Knoester failed to convert at the near-post.
Aberdeen were on top and made it count on the half-hour mark when Clarkson spectacularly curled them into the lead.
McCausland was booked for decking Topi Keskinen at the edge of the box and the midfielder’s set-piece was deadly.
Liam Kelly got a hand to the strike as it sailed for the top corner, but it was not enough to stop it hitting the net and the Reds were ahead.
Thelin’s team tried to press home their advantage with Morris having another shot off target and, although Igamane struck a volley straight at home No.1 Ross Doohan, it would get a whole lot worse for Rangers before the interval with the loss of a man and a second Aberdeen goal.
Auxiliary right wing-back McCausland was again left trailing Keskinen five minutes from half-time and took him down to earn a second booking and walk.
Keskinen shot wide when he could have set-up Kevin Nisbet, but Gueye made no mistake when Morris destroyed Curtis again down the Rangers left and delivered a perfect centre into his path to hammer beyond Kelly.
Igamane drove home a rebound to hit the net, but the ball was ruled out of play before being pulled into the box by Curtis for the initial Danilo header which Doohan saved in closing stages of the opening period to sum up a dismal half for Rangers.
Ferguson made changes at the break with Mohamed Diomande and Jefte introduced. Curtis moved up the pitch and, within three minutes, he won a head-fick to give Igamane a sniff.
Neither Alfie Dorrington nor Alexander Jansen dealt with the ball or the striker and his finish from the Rangers man was low and crisp beyond Doohan.
It was an unexpected setback for the hosts and they tried to redress the situation. Jefte had to head clear to deny Nisbet a simple headed finish and Keskinen shot wide.
Rangers remained in the game right until the end due to the tightness of the scoreline, but it was Aberdeen on the front foot for most of the closing stages.
Nisbet thought he’d sealed the deal with a third Aberdeen goal when lashing into the roof of the net with a couple of minutes remaining in normal time.
However, he was penalised for handball just prior to netting and it was ruled out after a VAR check and that proved a crucial call.
With referee Stevie McLean checking his watch for full-time, sub Cyriel Dessers burst clear and cannoned a shot against a post.
When Jefte collected the loose ball, he rolled it into the path of Hagi who cracked a special high into the net.
It popped the potential home party at Pittodrie. And also put the celebrations on hold, albeit only officially, at Parkhead.
THREE TALKING POINTS
1. BILBAO THE FOCUS FOR BARRY
Rangers’ team sheet at Pittodrie was a shock, although in another respect, it was understandable given the importance of keeping key men available and fresh for Bilbao. Nonetheless, the selections and raft of changes which was always going to bring a lack of cohesion left his team wide open to be sunk. Ferguson admitted prior to the game it was a risk and it backfired massively in the first period. A first start for Curtis, just a second start for Fernandes, who lasted less than 20 minutes. Oscar Cortes in the line-up for the first time since the start of the year. Danilo returned after a lengthy absence as the manager made nine changes to the side which faced Athletic last Thursday. McCausland operated at right wing-back and was annihilated by Keskinen. The fact that bringing down the Finn led to his cards was no shock. Curtis was tortured at times in the left-back slot by Morris which led to the second Aberdeen goal. He changed position after the restart with Jefte on and Mohamed Diomande introduced as Cortes and Danilo went off. Ferguson could not afford to have injuries suffered by the likes of John Souttar, Vaclav Cerny and Nicolas Raskin and he wasn’t prepared to risk it. He asked for the replacements to deliver and deputise, but, in truth, none of them really did enough to show themselves worthy of starts in Spain. It was down to the established guys to get involved after the interval and rescue a point.
2. ABERDEEN HEAD TO HAMPDEN WITH A SOUR TASTE
Aberdeen would have sniffed blood when they saw the Rangers line-up and looked to have seized their opportunity. Jimmy Thelin’s side are fighting for third spot in the Premiership, but the Scottish Cup also holds massive significance and the clash against Hearts on Saturday at the National Stadium could have a monumental impact on their season and Euro prospects for next term.
This should have been a superb way to tune-up. The Reds have now lost just one of their last 10 games, but this would feel like a defeat. Their goals were of huge quality. Clarkson’s free-kick was a peach and the run by Morris and finish from Gueye was lethal. His first top-flight strike since returning from serious injury is a massive lift ahead of the last-four crunch. But Thelin would have been annoyed at the defensive slip which allowed Rangers to reduce his team’s lead. It was weak and also took away some of their comfort blanket in terms of scoreline. They also failed to turn chances into more goals after the interval and paid the ultimate price at the finale. They should have been dancing down the road to the National Stadium. Instead, with a two-goal lead and a one-man advantage, they blew it and wasted much of their good work.
3. TALE OF TWO CAPTAINS AS SHINNIE WINS THE BATTLE WITH BARRON
The Rangers midfielder had a far from pleasant return to Pittodrie earlier in the season when his team were defeated 2-1 under Philippe Clement. On this occasion, Barron was handed the skipper’s armband by interim boss Barry Ferguson and, as expected, he was hounded by the home supporters every time he touched the ball. He didn’t have the honour for long as with Fernandes off injured, Tavernier took over before the midway mark of the first half. Barron has not lit it up at Ibrox since his transfer, but, despite toiling for form, he doesn’t lack heart and bottle to take responsibility. He kept taking it and offering when it would have been easier to hide and got far more of a hand in the engine-room after the interval when Diomande entered the contest. However, Shinnie was absolutely superb for the home side. Operating in the left-back position, he constantly took the ball, defended well and drove forward to cause problems with dangerous balls into the box. In the final half-an-hour, he went into the central area and maintained his phenomenal work ethic with a calmness on the ball. It should have been enough to see it out, but it was not. There’s 11 years between them in terms of age and there was a gap on the park in this one at Pittodrie, too. But, despite having the best of it, Shinnie was the one crestfallen at the end. A sore ending for the Reds leader.
