Rangers beat HJK Helsinki 3-2 at Ibrox this afternoon.
Rangers were in mid-season friendly action this afternoon, defeating HJK Helsinki 3-2 ahead of their return to Scottish Premiership action in midweek.
As part of the 2017 deal to sign striker Alfredo Morelos from HJK Helsinki, Rangers arranged an Ibrox friendly with the Finnish club, which was surprisingly scheduled for the middle of Rangers’ season.
Boss Steven Gerrard still went with a strong side after Friday’s Scottish Cup clash with Cowdenbeath was called off due to a frozen pitch, and Scott Arfield got the ball rolling for Rangers with the opening goal.
However, HJK hit back almost immediately, with Kevin Kouassivi-Benissa scoring an equaliser – and the same thing happened again in the second half, with Nikola Katic powering home a header before Lassi Lappalainen quickly brought the scores level for a second time.
Rangers winger Daniel Candeias scored the winner though, handing the Gers a 3-2 victory to kick off 2019 perfectly ahead of facing Kilmarnock in midweek.
Rangers fans got a first showing of Jermain Defoe and Steven Davis, with the veteran duo making their debuts having signed from Bournemouth and Southampton respectively earlier this month.
Defoe couldn’t get himself on the scoresheet but showed good movement, whilst Davis had some nice touches as they picked up 45 minutes of action having been barely-used in the Premier League this season.
The photos show Defoe in action for Rangers for the first time as well as Davis back at Ibrox, with fans no doubt excited to see them in action earlier today.
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