Glasgow Rangers slumped to their fifth straight Champions League loss in Group A this season, with a 3-0 defeat to Napoli meaning they now have to better the 4-0 loss they suffered against Ajax in September when the sides meet next week to qualify for the Europa League knockout stage.
It was always going to be a tough tie at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona for Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s men, and despite two chances for Malik Tillman and Alfredo Morelos, the Ibrox side went in at the interval two goals down and with a long road back.
The Colombian missed a sitter with just over 20 minutes to go that might have made for a nervy final quarter of the match for Napoli, but like so often this season, things didn’t go Rangers way. A wonderful header by Leo Ostigard sealed all three points and a fifth win in a row for Napoli.
There were, yet again, far too many poor performances, with Scott Wright being subbed off at halftime having taken just 20 touches of the ball. It was Ryan Kent, however, who once again most let Van Bronckhorst down.
Kent failed to deliver yet again on the big stage
A lively performance on Saturday, where he made the equaliser for John Lundstram, should have been the catalyst for the winger to finally kick his season into gear and generate the spark that the Light Blues have needed recently.
However, against Napoli, he was anonymous once again. A SofaScore rating of 5.8 was the lowest on the field as he failed to properly connect with left-back Ridvan Yilmaz or offer him any sort of protection meaning the young Turk was often caught out of position.
From the high of making seven key passes on Saturday to recording a grand total of zero last night, while also delivering just one accurate cross and succeeding with just three attempted dribbles, demonstrate that it was a night to forget for the 25-year-old.
He lost possession a staggering 21 times, the most of any Rangers player, and this regularly allowed Napoli to start attacks and exploit space.
Defensively, Kent wasn’t much better, winning just six duels from a total of 18 contested and his mentality recently should be questioned by the manager, and indeed his fellow teammates.
With his contract expiring at the end of the season, his performances simply don’t warrant an extended deal and the manager should look to cash in on him while the opportunity is there.
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