Aberdeen earned a 2-1 victory over Rangers at Pittodrie, keeping pace with Celtic at the top of the table and opening up a nine-point gap over their opponent.
Nicky Devlin fired in the hosts’ opener at Pittodrie after 31 minutes, Topi Keskinen flicking on a cross from left-back Jack McKenzie to his counterpart on the right side. Devlin had time and space to take a touch and hammer the ball high into the roof of the net, earning Aberdeen a reward for their strong start to the match.
Jimmy Thelan’s side were dominant and should have made it 2-0 six minutes before the half-time interval. Soon after Graeme Shinnie crashed a shot off the post, there was a VAR check when John Souttar appeared to block a Keskinen shot with his arm.
The referee, John Beaton, checked his pitchside monitor and pointed to the penalty spot, but Jack Butland guessed right to save Jamie McGrath’s unconvincing spot-kick. The Rangers keeper also kept out Jack McKenzie’s long-range effort and in a rare Rangers attack just before the break, Ross McCausland tapped in Nedim Bajrami’s pass from a yard out but was ruled offside.
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Celtic down Dundee to stay top of tree
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Celtic continued their unbeaten start and stayed above Aberdeen on goal difference with a 2-0 win over Dundee at Celtic Park.
The champions scored twice in the second half to hold on to their place at the top of the Scottish Premiership table. Full-back Alistair Johnson came off the bench to break the deadlock from close range, with Arne Engels’ penalty sealing victory after Antonio Portales was judged to have clipped Kyogo Furuhashi in the area.
Elsewhere, Tawanda Maswanhise’s double gave Motherwell a 2-1 away win at Dundee United, moving the visitors up to fourth place above the Tangerines. Kilmarnock are in sixth after mounting a second-half comeback to win 2-1 against bottom club Hearts, with Kyle Vassell netting the winner.
Hibernian edged off the foot of the table at the expense of their rivals, thanks to a goalless draw at Ross County. Elsewhere, St Mirren fought back to win 3-1 at home to St Johnstone through second-half goals from Mark O’Hara and Jonah Ayunga. PA Media
The lethargic Light Blues did offer a response after the break and were back level when Bajrami levelled in the 63rd minute with a fine solo goal. The Albania winger was able to escape several defenders before finishing low inside Dimitar Mitov’s far post.
Rangers pushed to take the lead, but James Tavernier’s cut-back failed to find either Tom Lawrence or Cyriel Dessers. Moments later, Aberdeen were back in front as Rangers failed to clear their lines. Devlin’s toe-poke from a tight angle went through Butland’s legs and hit the far post, with substitute Morris first to the rebound.
A frustrated Philippe Clement picked up a yellow card in the final five minutes for remonstrating at a decision against his team as time ran out for Rangers to find a second equaliser. Thelin, meanwhile, is now unbeaten in 16 games since taking over as Aberdeen manager in the summer, winning 15 of those.
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It was a particularly tough night for midfielder Connor Barron, returning to Pittodrie for the first time since leaving for Rangers in the summer and booed loudly throughout. By the final whistle, his former club had opened a nine-point gap to his new team, and hopes of bringing the title to Ibrox look increasingly forlorn.
