Rangers star drops a “strong message” amid Cristiano Ronaldo joining Rangers or Celtic FC

I was in attendance for Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to Glasgow at Hampden Park, but he discovered an immovable object in Rangers defender.

The Portuguese icon has seen and done everything in the game. He’s even crossed off the water flume at Cameron House from his long list of bucket list items, but defeating John Souttar is now unlikely.

After a night of mishits and strops, CR7 exited the park whining and shouting about who knows what, throwing his arms up in the air, a testament to how brilliantly Souttar and Grant Hanley had performed against the forward. Scotland’s 0-0 tie gained only one point in Nations League group A1, but the effort was noteworthy.

Souttar demonstrated from what I saw that he is more than capable of being Scotland’s number one defender in the middle of a back four or five. At club level, Philippe Clement demonstrated that he had a player capable of dealing with the rigours of playing elite opponents in the next Europa League matches.

I watched Rangers star leave Cristiano Ronaldo raging and this is what I found out amid eye-popping stat

The statistics back it up. He made nine clearances and won 100% of his air and ground duels, with an 84% pass accuracy and 60% long ball accuracy. It demonstrates that he not only won the defensive fight but was also able to advance the ball forward.

Souttar told BBC Sportsound after the game: “It’s our first point of the season, and I believe we earned it. We’ve been really unlucky not to pick up a point during the season, so this is welcome news.

“I believe it is always beneficial to preserve a clean sheet as a defender. It’s a tribute to the entire team, including Craig Gordon in goal, who made a fantastic stop toward the end. The boys are constantly seeking for more. We had chances. When we look back on the game, we will be happy.”