It’s hard to believe that a dramatic Rangers victory at Livingston back in September set the wheels in motion for Danny Rohl’s arrival at Ibrox.
At the sixth time of asking, former boss Russell Martin finally recorded his first win in charge courtesy of Max Aarons’ 94th-minute strike.
However, any sense of euphoria in the away stands was swiftly replaced with hostility, as chants of ‘Martin, Martin, get to France’ — or something along those lines — drowned out the cheers before play restarted.
It was a surreal moment, all right. One of many to have graced Scottish football this season.
Thanks mainly to the efforts of Rohl, the mood in West Lothian will be slightly different this time around.
The German has collected 46 of the 57 Premiership points on offer since taking over from Martin, with last weekend’s 4-2 win over Hearts putting his side within two of the league leaders.
Rangers boss Danny Rohl has guided his side to within two points of league leaders Hearts
The German has surpassed all expectations following the dismal reign of Russell Martin
Youssef Chermiti netted a hat-trick in last weekend’s 4-2 win over Hearts at Ibrox
In October, the season was a write-off. Four months on, a domestic double is a realistic prospect.
The fact they’ve managed to put themselves in this position with so many players consistently playing well below top form makes Rohl’s influence all the more impressive.
Though things have improved, defensive lapses remain an issue. Jack Butland, Nasser Djiga and Emmanuel Fernandez have all been guilty.
In midfield, Nico Raskin and Mohamed Diomande have blown hot and cold, and it’s the same story with Djeidi Gassama, who has struggled to meet expectations after making a blistering start to his Ibrox career.
And the jury is still very much out on Youssef Chermiti up top. Not even an excellent hat-trick against Hearts can convince some fans he should be the main man.
Rohl has placed more emphasis on the collective rather than the individual, even if that has meant sacrificing style in favour of substance.
Indeed, you could count on one hand the number of times Rangers have had a positive result and complete performance to boot. Even on their best days under Rohl, they’ve been a tough watch.
Max Aarons netted a 94th-minute winner for Rangers on their last visit to Livingston
Yes, they duly dispatched of Wilfried Nancy’s Celtic side back in November. But their first-half showing at Parkhead was woeful.
Two late goals in a 3-0 home win over Dundee made things look far more comfortable than they were in reality. Anyone who was there will tell you it was a hard slog.
Even last Sunday, slackness put them in all sorts of bother against Hearts before they eventually got their act together.
However, Rangers should take encouragement from the fact that they have yet to really click.
With the pressure mounting on Hearts, and with Celtic relying on last-gasp heroics every week just to stay alive, this would be the perfect time for Rohl’s men to find their swagger and take command of this enthralling title race.
They could certainly lay down a marker by swatting aside Championship-bound Livi tomorrow.
On paper, this should be a walkover against a team without a win since early August. But the evidence suggests it could be tricky.
Added time was required for Aarons to net the winner at Almondvale, and just 12 minutes remained when Diomande popped up with the clincher at Ibrox in November. The visitors were denied a stonewall penalty that day too.
Rohl’s men will be hard to stop if they can find their groove over the coming weeks
Alexandros Kyziridis left it late to net a winner for Hearts against Livi at the start of the season, while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain rescued Celtic at the death last week against the same opposition.
Rest assured, Rohl knows what to expect. Speaking about his side’s title chances on Friday, he said: ‘I totally believe we can do it. It’s not just about the last results, there’s no doubt about our strength of this squad now, of the individual players. There should be no question mark.
‘But football is football. It’s all about 11 against 11 in 90 minutes. And in one game, everything is possible. We have to do it very seriously, very aggressively.’
Of course, this isn’t the first time Rangers have been right in the mix around this time of year only to come up short. It’s been a stick to beat the club — and multiple managers — with for years now.
But time spent worrying about past failures is time wasted as far as Rohl is concerned.
All he can do is focus on what’s in front of him. And if he can find a way to match results with performances over the coming weeks, his side will be hard to stop.
