KRIS CAN DEUX NO WRONG

RANGERS 2 HEARTS 0

KRIS BOYD pleaded with Paul Le Guen to give him the chance to solve Rangers' goal crisis - and responded with a double when the manager finally let him loose against title rivals Hearts.

Gers were worthy winners and didn't have a failure as they outclassed the Jambos.

But it was a dismal day for the Tynecastle side and Robbie Neilson heaped on the misery in injury time when he was sent off for a second yellow.

Neilson wasn't the only Hearts defender to suffer as Rangers turned on the style.

Lee Martin, Chris Burke and Dado Prso were superb for Le Guen's side - but all the talk will be about hitman Boyd.

He put pressure on himself by assuring the Ibrox boss he would produce the goods if handed his first start of the season.

However, Boyd's self-belief was spot on as he rattled home a penalty seconds after the restart and scored with a header three minutes later.

Rangers fans were worried about the direction their side was heading in under Le Guen after a slow start - but they left the stadium yesterday in no doubt that their heroes have what it takes to win the title.

Hearts, on the other hand, were woeful and Ibrox keeper Lionel Letizi didn't have a serious save to make all afternoon.

If the Jambos are to turn around their 2-1 Champions League deficit against AEK Athens on Wednesday night they will have to raise their game big time.

They never looked comfortable in defence against Gers and always came up short when they tried to break down Le Guen's rearguard.

It must be a worry for coach Valdas Ivanauskas ahead of the trip to Greece.

But an even bigger headache could be lying in wait as owner Vladimir Romanov can't be a happy man after such a poor display.

And there's only one loser when that's the case.

Le Guen didn't hold back from giving a few of his players a much-needed boot up the backside after last week's 1-1 draw at Dunfermline.

Thomas Buff el, Alan Hutton, Libor Sionko and Charlie Adam were relegated to the bench with Martin, Burke, Boyd and Phil Bardsley taking their place in the side.

The Gers boss also ditched his 4-2-3-1 formation to go with an orthodox 4-4-2.

His players looked comfortable with the system and knocked the ball about well early on.

Jeremy Clement got on the end of a flowing move after good work from Burke and Boyd but the Frenchman's shot from the edge of the box flew well wide of Craig Gordon's goal.

Hearts battled back and Letizi had to make his first save in 11 minutes when he tipped over a 30-yard Bruno Aguiar free-kick.

The French keeper gifted the Pars a point last week but boosted his confidence here by coming to collect a couple of early crosses.

Rangers were playing with urgency and almost grabbed a deserved lead after 19 minutes.

On-loan Manchester United kid Martin fired in a great corner and Julien Rodriguez bulleted a header just over. It was a great chance and the French defender should have scored.

Gers also struggled at defending set-pieces and Hearts had them worried a few times.

But they always looked the more dangerous side and Jambos keeper Gordon showed the form that made him Player of the Year last term with stunning saves from Prso and Boyd. Le Guen's men had a grip on the game and played some lovely football.

Stevie Smith and Martin teamed up well down the left and gave the Tynecastle defenders a tough time.

In their last Ibrox outing Rangers created a hatful of chances but squandered a point in a 2-2 draw with Dundee United. And poor finishing looked set to haunt them again when they missed two golden chances seconds before the interval.

Burke threaded a great pass to Prso and the Croatian timed his run to perfection to beat the offside trap.

But he couldn't find a way past Gordon as the keeper spread himself to block Prso's strike.

The rebound fell to Boyd and you would have put your last tenner on him finding the net.

However, with Gordon on the deck, the striker hit his 10-yard strike low and it was cleared off the line by Hearts skipper Steven Pressley.

Boyd's luck changed just 20 seconds after the restart when he fired Rangers into the lead.

Neilson brought down Prso for a clear penalty and Boyd confidently stepped up before sending Gordon the wrong way from 12 yards.

The former Killie star celebrated as if a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

He was determined to prove Le Guen had been wrong to bench him for the last two games and grabbed the second after 49 minutes. Martin whipped in a free-kick and Boyd outjumped the Hearts defence at the back post to head home from six yards.

Rangers were all over the Jambos and almost made it three moments later.

Burke set up Prso and his shot from 20 yards crashed against the bar.

Hearts offered little going forward and rarely threatened.

Ivanauskas took off striker Roman Bednar at half-time but replacement Michal Pospisil lasted just 16 minutes before hobbling off injured.

Former Rangers star Neil McCann came on in the hope of creating something for his side. He was up against Bardsley initially but the on-loan Manchester United star was also struggling with an injury and soon went off for Hutton.

Bardsley was given a standing ovation by the Ibrox crowd as was Boyd when he made way for Filip Sebo.

In contrast, Hearts star Paul Hartley - a confessed boyhood Celtic fan - was booed when he made his comeback from a groin injury by coming on for Saulius Mikoliunas with 20 minutes left.

The Tynecastle side were desperate to pull a goal back but rarely threatened Letizi's goal as their final ball was poor.

Rangers were happy to let Hearts come at them and never looked like throwing away their advantage.

Burke and Martin entertained the crowd with some great play down the flanks. The young wingers played with smiles and can be pleased with their superb performances.

They weren't the only ones to impress and the crowd roared their approval when the full-time whistle blew.

Hearts pipped Rangers to second place last term but the Ibrox side seem a different proposition under Le Guen.

There's still a long way to go but more performances like this will have Gers challenging for the title.

REFWATCH

KENNY CLARK did well in allowing some strong tackles to go - although it didn't always please the Ibrox fans. Got the penalty decision and bookings right. Can be satisfied with his display. Rating: 7/10.

Taken from the Sunday Mail