Rangers Overtake Celtic with Convincing Win Over Aberdeen to Claim Second Spot

Rangers jumped ahead of Celtic to secure second place in the Scottish Premiership with a decisive 4-1 victory over struggling Aberdeen. Following Hearts' win earlier on Saturday, it was crucial for Danny Röhl's team to demonstrate their title aspirations by earning three points of their own. Despite a sluggish start, the desired outcome was never seriously in doubt. Tochi Chukwuani scored his first league goal in the 35th minute, capitalizing on a rebound from Mikey Moore's initial attempt. The Tottenham loanee dominated the midfield, converting his team's dominance into a beautifully composed finish shortly after the break. Dennis Geiger briefly threatened to disrupt the proceedings, but the danger was short-lived. Aberdeen scored their first away goal of 2026 after Rangers' defensive lapse, only to concede a decisive third goal 10 minutes later, continuing their downward slide. With all Aberdeen defenders stationary from the second phase of a set-play, Nicolas Raskin blasted the ball inside the far post, and James Tavernier curled a stunning free-kick beyond a helpless Dimitar Mitov late in the game. The anxiety at Ibrox was alleviated long before Tavernier's stoppage-time stunner, with title discussions as loud and persuasive as they've been all season. Rangers extended their unbeaten run to 14 league games, accumulating more points than any other team since Christmas, and are well-positioned to go the distance in this thrilling three-way battle for the Scottish Premiership title. Rangers head coach Danny Röhl expressed his satisfaction with the result and performance, stating that his team fully deserved the win and were the dominant side throughout. He emphasized the importance of focusing on the next seven games, which he referred to as 'seven finals.' Aberdeen boss Stephen Robinson acknowledged that his team conceded poor goals and failed to make Rangers work for their victories. He recognized that his team is in a relegation fight and stressed the need for a collective reaction to improve their defensive performance.