By Alistair Aird
BLAST FROM THE PAST – MOLS MEANS GOALS
Rangers and Motherwell have enjoyed many encounters at Ibrox over the years, 140 to be precise. More often than not, the home side emerge victorious – Rangers have won 80% (112) of the clashes – and there have been some memorable encounters since the sides first met on 12 December 1903. One of those – a 4-1 win on 15 August 1999 – featured a stunning solo performance from a recently acquired Dutchman whose career at Ibrox will always be a case of what might have been.
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Michael Mols was something of an unknown quantity when he signed for Rangers for a fee in the region of £4,000,000 in the summer of 1999. He had scored 20 goals in 31 league matches for FC Utrecht in the season that had just concluded, ranking him fourth behind Ruud van Nistelrooy (31), Luc Nilis (24), and Jan Venegoor of Hesselink (21) in the race to be top scorer in Holland’s top division. And in season 1997/98, he was averaging a goal every two league games too, with 16 goals scored in 32 appearances. But outside of Holland, no one really knew much about him.
Mols made a slow start in a Rangers jersey. He made his debut as a sub in a friendly against Livingston at Almondvale – Tony Vidmar scored a hat trick – and scored just once in six pre-season appearances. That came in a 10-1 win over Follese FK on 17 July. But he found his groove in spectacular fashion when the serious business got underway.
The Dutchman scored twice as Rangers opened their Champions League campaign with a 4-1 win over Haka in Finland, and he scored his first league goal in the second match of the campaign, a 4-0 win over Hearts at Tynecastle. But it was a solo showing eight days later at Ibrox that thrust Mols into the hearts and minds of the Rangers supporters.
The defending champions welcomed Motherwell to Ibrox on 15 August. In goal for the Lanarkshire side was the legendary Andrew Lewis Goram, and their attacking spearhead was future Ranger, Lee McCulloch. Just behind him was the former Rangers striker, John Spencer. The veteran Pat Nevin was among their substitutes.
Rangers had opened the season with two wins out of two – the aforementioned 4-0 win over Hearts and a 2-1 victory over Kilmarnock on the opening day – and a few days before the visit of Motherwell, Ibrox had hosted one of the greatest ever European nights under the lights when Parma were beaten 2-0.
Perhaps still brimming with confidence from that one, Rangers were filled with attacking intent from the off against the Steelmen. Goram denied two livewires – Rod Wallace and Neil McCann – inside the opening 15 minutes, and Mols was twice guilty of errant finishing, dragging a couple of shots wide of the target. Vidmar, McCann and Wallace had further opportunities to score before Mols broke the deadlock four minutes before half time.
McCann surged down the left and floated an inviting ball to the back post. Mols drew back his right foot and met it on the full volley, firing the ball across Goram and into the far corner. It was a stunning goal.
The pair combined again before referee Jim McCluskey signalled the end of the first half. McCann jinked his way to the bye-line, and his cutback was thumped into the net by the left foot of Mols.
Rangers were relentless now, and after Wallace had had a shot blocked, Claudio Reyna played a sumptuous through ball into the path of Mols. The Dutchman moved into the box and his right foot shot went through the legs of Goram to complete his hat trick.
A stunning save from Goram diverted a McCann shot on to the crossbar as the home side sought a fourth goal, but Mols added the piece de resistance with nine minutes to go. A corner from Giovanni van Bronckhorst was cleared to the edge of the penalty area where Mols was stationed. He took a touch on his chest to control the ball then fired a dipping right foot volley beyond Goram.
The goal rounded off a splendid match for the Dutchman, and by the time Rangers travelled to face Bayern Munich in Germany in their final Champions League group match, Mols had taken his tally of goals in the league to nine in 10 matches. He was flying, and had also inflicted pain on PSV Eindhoven, scoring twice in a magnificent 4-1 win in the Champions League group stages.
Alas, he was brought crashing to earth on a horrible night in Munich. Chasing a ball played over the top, he hurdled the outrushing Oliver Khan as the German goalkeeper slid in to challenge him. As he landed, Mols’s knee buckled. His season was over. There’s a compelling argument too that his Rangers career was badly compromised by that incident too.
He returned the following season, scoring in the 5-1 win over Celtic at Ibrox, but he seemed to have a lost something from his game. That terrific trademark turn that had defenders bamboozled was still there from time to time, but there seemed to be a fragility in Mols, perhaps a lack of belief that his knee would hold up.
Mols scored seven goals in season 2000/01, and only two in 24 games the following season. But he was back to the fore in an epic 2002/03 season that brought a domestic Treble to Ibrox. Mols scored 13 times in the league – one of them was on the nerve-shredding final day of the season and he also scored the winner when Celtic were defeated 3-2 at Ibrox in December – and clocked up a more than respectable 14 goals in 35 appearances.
His contract was due to expire, but he was given a one-year extension. In what was an abysmal season at Ibrox, Mols scored 12 goals in 45 appearances as all three domestic trophies were meekly surrendered.
Mols left Rangers at the end of season 2003/04. He made a total of 173 appearances for the club and scored 59 goals. Had it not been for the fateful moment in Munich, both of those figures would have been so much higher. Having scored 13 times in his first 20 competitive matches for Rangers, Mols would likely have become a centurion by netting over 100 goals for the club. Indeed, he may well have rivalled Brian Laudrup for the crown of the finest overseas player to pull on a Rangers jersey. That’s how explosive his impact had been before his injury.
Nevertheless, Michael Mols will always be thought of fondly by the Rangers family. His Rangers career will forever be a tale of what might have been, and while he may not be among the pantheon of legends, he still played a significant role in the successful sides of that era under Advocaat and Alex McLeish. His status as a cult hero is secure.
POSTSCRIPT
The win over Motherwell was part of an electrifying start to the league season for Rangers. Dick Advocaat’s side only dropped one point in their opening 12 league matches – a 1-1 draw against Kilmarnock at Rugby Park – and lost just twice all season. Ironically, one of those losses came against Motherwell at Fir Park on the final day of the season.
Rangers won 28 of their 36 league matches, and romped to the title, finishing a whopping 21 points ahead of Celtic.
A 4-0 win over Aberdeen secured the Scottish Cup at the end of May, but the Dons had ultimately thwarted hopes a back-to-back Treble earlier in the season when they eliminated Advocaat’s side from the League Cup.
Rod Wallace and Jorg Albertz took over the scoring mantle, each netting 17 league goals. Billy Dodds, signed from Dundee United, proved a valuable asset too, netting 10 goals in 18 league appearances.