Rangers manager Michael Beale hailed a “good night” after his side beat Livingston 4-0 at Ibrox to reach the semi-finals of the Viaplay Cup.
After a bright start to the game, Abdallah Sima fired the hosts ahead just 10 minutes in before a brilliant solo effort from Ridvan Yilmaz doubled the lead in the second half.
They capped the match off with two quickfire goals in the final 10 minutes as Sima found the net from a deflection before Ryan Jack struck in stoppage time.
The win came on the back of a lacklustre 1-0 win against Motherwell in the cinch Premiership at the weekend, and Beale was pleased with how his side played.
“We won a third game in seven days, another clean sheet, we’re in a semi-final so it’s a good night for us,” he said.
“We just stayed with the ball a bit more first half, we were a bit more patient, I thought at times we could speed up a little bit, but in terms of our general possession it was much better than the weekend.
“Abdallah showed the way with his running off the ball, we need to do a bit more of that and by the end of the game we did.”
Beale also provided an injury update on Yilmaz, who was substituted shortly after scoring, and Kemar Roofe, who came off at half-time.
He said: “Ridvan was cramp and Kemar is a groin problem so we’ll know more tomorrow.”
Rangers will now meet with Hearts in the semi-final at Hampden Park in November.
Yilmaz’s stunning solo effort in the second half was arguably the pick of the goals after he made a great run from his own half down the centre of the pitch before firing the ball into the bottom corner.
He said: “(I’m) delighted for him because he’s had a rough first year and a bit to his Rangers career because he’s showed moments and flashes of why the club invested in him and why he was such a big talent in Turkey, in the national team so young, but obviously injuries have held him back.
“Hopefully that’s the start of him showing what he can do more regularly.”
Defeat knocked Livingston out of the competition, with Rangers’ victory kicked off by Sima’s finish in the first half.
The forward appeared to nudge Jamie Brandon off the ball before cutting inside to smash in the top corner and Livi manager David Martindale believes it was a foul.
“Disappointed because I did think it was a foul, I’ll be honest,” he said.
“Never got it but I thought we were spooked the first 15 minutes, I thought we struggled to get to grips with our shape.
“Then the second half, the second part of the first half I thought we managed to build ourselves back into the game, we limited them to very few chances because the first maybe 20/22 minutes something along those lines, there was a lot of chances going behind us quite a bit.
“I thought the second part of the first half we managed to build ourselves into the game, get ourselves in at half-time 1-0, had a chat, had a reshape and I thought we started the second half really well.
“I thought we were doing OK then we gave away a cheap goal, individual errors within that phase of play which was disappointing.”
Ben Smith proud of Ramsgate’s FA Cup run despite defeat at AFC Wimbledon
Ben Smith insists he is proud of Ramsgate’s FA Cup run despite elimination following a 5-0 defeat against AFC Wimbledon at Plough Lane.
Iraq international Ali Al-Hamadi scored twice for the Dons, with Jake Reeves, Josh Neufville and Connor Lemonheigh-Evans also finding the net.
The Rams started the evening as the lowest-ranked team left in this season’s competition, but the five-goal defeat means they miss out on a home clash with Championship high-flyers Ipswich.
However, Smith was delighted to see his side stick to their style of play against EFL opposition.
“I am proud of the boys, I thought they gave it their all,” he said.
“I can’t say a player didn’t give me everything, they went to the last minute, and we did it in bucket loads.
“I think at times we did show some composure, and we did move the ball well, I just think we came up against a much better and stronger level of opposition than we are used to.
“They pressed the life out of us at times, we just didn’t have the answers in terms of forward passes.
“I would liked to have seen us score a goal, we had a couple of chances and their keeper pulled off a great save in the first half.
“It was just not to be, but I am proud of the players, it is not about tonight it is about the journey.
“You can see from the support at the end there, it was incredible.
“We move forward, it is about the league now, and this club needs to be higher than it is, that is our job, and we will use this as a springboard.”
Johnnie Jackson believes the Tractor Boys will provide a tough test when they travel to south London in the third round.
He said: “They are a top side and they are doing a great job there.
“They are doing some great stuff, and they have a chance of going up to the Premier League this year with what they are doing in the Championship.
“It will be a really tough game, but we know that, but we have been excellent here of late.
“That is five on the bounce now at home, so we feel like we can match teams, especially here.
“It will be the other way round, we will be looking to cause the shock and they will be looking to get the job done.
“The Ramsgate fans were class, they really added to the atmosphere of the game and they will probably be a bit disappointed that they did not see their team score.
“Credit to them, credit to Ben and his team, they have done themselves proud.”
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta insists he wants to keep goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale
Mikel Arteta insists he wants to keep Aaron Ramsdale – but refused to rule out the England goalkeeper leaving Arsenal in January.
Ramsdale lost his position as Arteta’s first-choice goalkeeper earlier this season following the arrival of David Raya on loan from Brentford.
Since September 3, Ramsdale has made just three appearances – two of which came in the Carabao Cup, with his one Premier League game in that time coming with Raya ineligible against the Bees.
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With his place at Euro 2024 in the balance as he continues to warm the bench at the Emirates Stadium, Ramsdale’s future is seemingly up in the air.
Arteta recently urged Ramsdale to be patient over any decision, saying the situation could look very different in March.
A shoulder injury to England colleague Nick Pope, however, could see Newcastle in the market for another goalkeeper in January.
Asked if he would be open to selling Ramsdale to Newcastle, Arteta replied: “I want Aaron with us.
“I am very happy to have two very, very good goalkeepers and Aaron is staying with us.
“We want to be better, so we want to add to what we already have. That’s the intention that we have.”
But, when pushed on whether he would categorically rule out a January switch for Ramsdale, the Spaniard added: “I won’t do that to any player. Any player.
“I cannot tell you that any Arsenal player is not going to leave in January. Or he is to stay here for the next three years.
“I won’t say that no player is going to go to Newcastle. Or no member of the staff either. I won’t say it. If you say yes or no, I won’t say it.
“I cannot guarantee that nobody is going to be leaving in January. For Newcastle or any other club. So it is a no.”
Ali Al-Hamadi stars as AFC Wimbledon thump Ramsgate to reach FA Cup third round
Ali Al-Hamadi scored twice as AFC Wimbledon beat Ramsgate 5-0 to set up an FA Cup third-round clash with Championship high-flyers Ipswich.
The Rams started the evening as the lowest-ranked team left in the competition and were behind after just eight minutes when Al-Hamadi pounced on a loose pass before feeding Jake Reeves, who rifled a powerful strike into the top-left corner.
The hosts doubled their advantage when Iraq international Al-Hamadi poked home at the far post following a melee in the box, and it was three when Josh Neufville stroked the ball into an empty net in the 43rd minute.
The Isthmian League South East side kept fighting, with their best chance of the half falling to Lee Martin, but his close-range effort flew over the crossbar.
Connor Lemonheigh-Evans found the bottom right corner with a driven shot to put the Dons 4-0 up three minutes after half-time.
Al-Hamadi scored his second of the match five minutes later to wrap up a convincing win, intercepting another poor Rams pass before finding the top right corner.
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