Derek McInnes's tenure as Rangers manager began with a 1-1 draw against Dundee United at Tannadice, as Thelo Aasgaard's spectacular second-half strike cancelled out Lachlan Rose's opener.
McInnes handed debuts to Ivor Pandur, Ben Godfrey, Cammy Devlin and Lawrence Shankland, with Ryan Naderi starting on the right of Rangers' attack and Youssef Chermiti named among the substitutes. The two starting lineups contained only two Scots, both captains: Dylan Tait wore the armband for United, while Shankland was the new Rangers captain.
United take the lead
Rangers lacked control in possession during a first half in which Shankland, the former Hearts striker, was the first to threaten, drawing a reaction stop from Jack Walton with a flick. Walton's only other save before the break came from a Naderi header that appeared slightly off target, while Rose and Zac Sapsford got in behind for the home side without managing a shot on goal. Rangers' defence was kept busy as United worked the ball into the box, and Dujon Sterling and Mohamed Diomande both fired wide from outside the area.
United made the breakthrough in the 38th minute. Rangers centre-back Emmanuel Fernandez was out of position when Sapsford dummyed Randall's low cross, and Rose's left-foot effort spun off the post and over the line to become the first goal of the Premiership season.
Aasgaard levels
McInnes made two changes at half-time, sending on Chermiti and Dan Neil for Naderi and Djeidi Gassama. His side immediately looked more threatening, with Aasgaard forcing an excellent diving save from Walton, then levelling moments later in the 56th minute. Shankland's physical presence caused United problems as they defended another high ball, and Aasgaard took an excellent touch to take out Joshua Rawlins before firing a left-foot strike into the top corner from 16 yards.
Rangers could not keep up the momentum, though, and United soon stemmed the tide of pressure. Jesse Randall then missed a glorious chance to mark his league debut with a famous winner, when substitute Daniel Bennie's swerving pass put the New Zealand international clean through on goal with eight minutes left. However, the winger dinked his shot straight into goalkeeper Ivor Pandur's hands.
Late chances
Chermiti almost made the home side pay for that miss, but Walton stopped his effort with his feet. At the other end, home substitute Idjessi Metsoko delivered a weak effort straight at Pandur from a decent opportunity, leaving both teams to settle for a point.
