Rabbi Matondo made a timely impact on the pitch on Saturday, suggesting there is much more to come from him.
The Welsh international was pivotal in the crucial second goal against Hearts – a three man devastating combination with Antonio Colak getting the rightful plaudits for the finish.
A perfect long range pass from John Lundstram found Matondo who controlled it and got his head up. He was able to commit his marker as well as having the intelligence to pick out the run of the Croatian international who stroked the ball home in style.
🔵 All the goals from Tynecastle as Antonio Colak's double plus strikes from Alfredo Morelos and Ryan Kent helped Rangers see off 10-man Hearts!
What was the best goal, Rangers fans? ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/k9urWfvBr7
— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) October 1, 2022
It was a key impact and a massive boost for a player who hasn’t really delivered so far.
Yes, that is a wee bit harsh on Matondo but at Rangers there are demands and levels to be reached. Conversely, he will get time to develop and find his feet as long as he is putting in the required application.
He came in relatively ‘from the cold’ given that he wasn’t even involved against Dundee United prior to the international break. VitalRangers understands that omission was due to an in-house disciplinary reason. With that in mind, it is great that the winger won back the trust of the manager to start against Hearts and even better that he got a fine assist.
There is significant ability possessed by Rabbi Matondo, that is clear. Aligned with his blistering pace, he has great potential to make the grade at Ibrox as long as he can find the required improvement and consistency going forward.
The 22-year old looked back on his display in Edinburgh with satisfaction, as reported by Rangers TV:
“This is what you work hard for – to try and play. That hasn’t been the case this last few weeks, but that is football and you have to be ready when the chance comes.”
“I felt ready and it was good to be on the pitch and hopefully I will get many more opportunities.”
Apart from that one moment he did nothing on Saturday either .He is a million miles away from what we need .Sakala threatened more in the ten minutes he was on than Matondo did all game . Hope I`m wrong but looks like another expensive failure to me.