Nigerian duo Joe Aribo and Calvin Bassey were impressive for Glasgow Rangers as they came from behind to beat Old Firm rivals Celtic 2-1 in the Scottish Cup semi-final after extra-time in Hampden Park on Sunday.
Celtic went into the game hoping to keep their hopes of a fifth domestic treble in six seasons alive, after winning the Scottish League Cup in December and establishing a six-point lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership.
However, Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s men were the better side from the kick off and Aribo had the chance to give the Gers the early lead but saw his header narrowly miss the target.
John Lundstram almost handed Rangers the lead but curled his shot against the post as the men in blue enjoyed the better of the first half, but their threat faded after Aaron Ramsey was injured shortly before the break.
In the absence of the injured Ramsey, Aribo took charge of play in the midfield and was at the heart of every move made by Rangers.
Despite their dominance, Celtic took the lead in the 63 minutes after Greg Taylor fired a low finish beyond Jon McLaughlin.
The Hoops came close to adding a second five minutes later when Cameron Carter-Vickers crashed a left-footed shot against the crossbar from a corner.
They were however made to pay for that missed opportunity after 78 minutes after Bassey’s cross was met by Kemar Roofe whose heavy touch fell nicely to Scott Arfield to curl home just four minutes after coming on to force an additional time.
With a penalty shoot-out on the horizon, Rangers found time for a winner as Bassey’s left-wing cutback was diverted into his own net by Starfelt, ending Celtic’s treble hopes and booking Rangers’ cup final spot where Hearts lie in wait after overcoming Hibernian on Saturday.
