Against East Fife Felix, while switching his side in each half, played a lot of youngsters in that game. Rangers are off to the USA on tour come Saturday and are keen to see which of their youngsters should make the trip. So could field a lot of them for the friendly tomorrow (Thursday). Since the game is behind closed doors I guess the clubs/managers will have come to an understanding. So its doubly difficult to second guess our starting line-up. New signing Kostas Stafylidis is still back home and I suspect will get his first run out for the U21s on Saturday against Walton Casuals. Of the lads up in Scotland, my guess is that Felix will go young, at least to start with - …………………..Bettinelli…………….. …..Vosper……..Hutchinson………Grimmer… …………………..Tunnicliffe……….. …Roberts…….David……Christensen…..G Williams.. ……………..Woodrow…Dembele.. Although A Trialist or two may feature again.
Anyone know why this is behind closed doors???? I also hope the club releases the score and line up afterwards
Starting XI, as confirmed on Facebook: Joronen, Voser, Hutchinson, Burgess, Stafylidis, Hoogland, David, Tunnicliffe, Roberts, Dembélé, Rodallega. Sounds like 3-5-2 with Stafylidis and Hoogland (or perhaps Voser) as wingbacks. Good to see Pat Roberts in the line up. Latest score is 2-2. We fell behind twice and equalised twice, through Dembele and Rodallega. Dembele's goal was a header from a 'great cross from Stafylidis' (according to the club's Facebook page), while Hugo pounced on a defensive error, apparently.
Line up for the second half: Bettinelli, Christensen, Grimmer, Burn, Zverotic, Trialist, Hyndman, Trialist, G Williams, Trialist, R Williams
No sooner had I typed the above, then this happens: 73 minutes: 4-2 down. It's just like watching Brazil!
Think they are likely to be the same three trialists as before Chihi, Fotheringham and Clayton (not confirmed)
I really don't think the third trialist is Clayton. He does look similar to Clayton and plays in a similar position and Clayton is currently on trial with a club so I can see why people think it's him but I really don't think it is.
The Club report of the game: In the searing heat, Fulham started brightly, with Chris David testing the Rangers defence with a series of teasing set-pieces. However, the first chance of the game fell to the hosts with MacLeod drawing a decent stop from Jesse Joronen following some clever work by Miller. In response, the Whites went agonisingly close to opening the scoring with Ryan Tunnicliffe freeing Kostas Stafylidis down the left. The Greek full-back whipped in a delightful cross but Dembélé just couldn’t get a touch at the back post. So it was Rangers that made the breakthrough on 11 minutes, with Miller volleying home a fine finish after Fulham failed to clear Fraser Aird’s corner from the left. agath’s side sought an immediate reply with Shaun Hutchinson going close following a David corner and Stafylidis driving an ambitious effort over the bar from distance. The latter was heavily involved in Fulham’s equaliser, though, delivering a pin-point cross for Moussa Dembélé. The young Frenchman showed his undoubted talent in front of goal to head beyond Cameron Bell on 18 minutes. But just as the Whites looked like establishing control, Rangers pegged them back moments later following MacLeod’s stunning 25-yard strike. The number 10 took a composed touch before unleashing an unstoppable shot into the top-right corner. Cameron Burgess did brilliantly to thwart a Rangers attack with Miller lurking to add a third, while Joronen made a confident take from Law’s curling effort. A decent passage of play for Fulham saw Patrick Roberts deliver a telling run down the right, while David beat three players before seeing a shot well blocked by centre-back Bilel Moshni. The Whites were eventually rewarded when Hugo Rodallega pounced on a defensive error to lift a cool finish over the dive of Bell in the 28th minute. The Colombian striker then tested the Rangers goal with a powerful long-range strike. Both teams had half-chances to take a lead into the break, Miller seeing a strike blocked by Hutchinson and another teasing set-piece from David causing problems at the other end. With 11 changes made at half-time, Fulham gradually began to settle with the two Williams - George and Ryan - driving their side forward. A foul on the latter, seven minutes in, eventually saw Trialist A bend an effort narrowly wide. Barrie McKay went close at the other end, shooting wide from close range when getting on to a low cross from the left, while Jack Grimmer did well to block a powerful hit from Lee McCulloch. An impressive run from Aird, when cutting in from the left, drew a foul from Lasse Vigen Christensen in a dangerous position just outside of the box. Thankfully, the Fulham defensive wall did its job, breaking to block Law’s stinging free-kick. Law did have the ball in the net on 67 minutes, racing through to lift the ball over Marcus Bettinelli in the Fulham goal to restore his side’s lead. Three became four six minutes later when Kyle Hutton carried the ball from deep before finding McKay on the right. The Rangers winger drove in a low cross, with Faure sweeping in a close-range finish on 73 minutes. A nice move involving Emerson Hyndman and George Williams almost halved the hosts’ two-goal lead, the American’s lofted pass almost finding the run of his teammate. George Williams saw a deflected strike hit the woodwork late on, but Rangers held firm to secure the win.
I've seen various pictures from the game and Chihi and Fotheringham are definitely Trialist A and B. However, the third one is still a mystery - he's the one on the left of this picture (Fotheringham is on the right). please log in to view this image Link to pic: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Br8dT2bCcAAVsaT.jpg I'm with FI - there is a similarity to be Max Clayton - but this guy seems older. Here's a video with Clayton scoring for Crewe: [video=youtube;13xpRqNSLGY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=13xpRqNSLGY[/video]
I'm thinking he's probably from the German league. Maybe Felix has worked with him before. Here's another image of him, hopefully somebody can identify him because it's driving me crazy. View attachment 32421
I know pre-season friendlies can be deceptive - Boateng looked great last summer, as I recall - but it sounds like Stafylidis is just what we've been crying out for on the left. Encouraging.
He certainly fits the profile Captain, and I don't doubt he has the potential so if he settles quick we could be on to a good one here.
