Antonio Colak scored twice as Rangers thrashed 10-man Hearts 4-0 at Tynecastle on Saturday to maneuver prime of the Scottish Premiership.

The 29-year-old Croatia striker’s brace took his tally for the season to 11 objectives since he joined from Malmo in the summertime.

Cammy Devlin’s pink card shortly earlier than the break undermined the Jambos’ hopes of a fightback earlier than strikes within the closing quarter of an hour from substitute Alfredo Morelos and Ryan Kent sealed a morale-boasting victory for Rangers forward of their Champions League journey to Liverpool on Tuesday.

How Rangers thrashed Hearts at Tynecastle

Hearts supervisor Robbie Neilson made one tweak to the aspect that began the 3-0 win away to Motherwell final day out as Stephen Humphrys began as a substitute of Andy Halliday.

Rangers made two adjustments from the aspect that began the win over Dundee United a fortnight beforehand as kids Leon King and Charlie McCann made manner for Rabbi Matondo and Ben Davies, who got here again in for his first look since mid-August.

The guests had the primary likelihood of the match after three minutes when Davies had a close-range effort deflected behind from a James Tavernier nook. Moments later, the identical participant noticed his header from one other Tavernier nook scrambled out by goalkeeper Craig Gordon.

Rangers went forward within the sixth minute when Colak headed in off Gordon’s left-hand put up after assembly a beautiful Kent cross from the left.

Hearts tried to discover a response and Humphrys threatened with a few highly effective strikes from exterior the field.

Scott Arfield had a terrific likelihood to double Rangers’ lead within the twentieth minute when he received in behind after Lewis Neilson – with the solar in his eyes – appeared to lose the flight of a ball excessive however the Rangers midfielder rolled his effort broad from contained in the field.

The guests’ second objective arrived 10 minutes later, nonetheless, when Matondo slipped a nicely-weighted cross into the trail of Colak who clipped a beautiful end previous Gordon from the angle of the six-yard field.

Issues received worse for Hearts within the thirty eighth minute after Devlin was proven a straight pink card for racing in and stamping on the ankle of Matondo because the Rangers participant shielded the ball from Alex Cochrane on the touchline in entrance of the visiting technical space. Each side made double substitutions firstly of the second half and Hearts’ two replacements nearly had a swift affect when Halliday headed broad from Robert Snodgrass’ nook within the forty eighth minute.

4 minutes later, Rangers winger Kent had a low angled shot deflected broad of the far put up. From the ensuing nook, sub Steven Davis fired over from contained in the field after being picked out by Tavernier.

The guests killed off any hope of a Hearts fightback within the 76th minute when substitute Morelos blasted residence from eight yards out after being arrange by Tavernier.

And Kent put the seal on Rangers’ victory within the first minute of stoppage time when he stepped away from Peter Haring and fired in an excellent low strike from simply contained in the field.