Neil agreed to a three-year contract at Ibrox in July and was immediately added to Derek McInnes’ senior leadership team.
With Lawrence Shankland unavailable, he took the captain’s armband again and delivered an outstanding display in his first Old Firm derby. He controlled the midfield alongside Nicolas Raskin and James Penrice, who moved inside from left-back.
Manager McInnes said Dan would naturally receive attention for scoring twice with two contrasting finishes, but the team had identified space near the edge of the penalty area that could be exploited through effective attacking play.
He added that players still had to rise to the challenge and demonstrate their ability, which Dan did. McInnes also praised the strong contributions of Nico and James.
McInnes described all three midfielders as excellent and credited them with helping Rangers gain control of the contest.
Neil’s influence has steadily increased in recent weeks, and this was his most impressive performance for Rangers so far. He outperformed experienced opponents Callum McGregor and Benjamin Nygren.
One memorable moment saw Neil turn past McGregor and accelerate away from the Celtic captain. The move summed up both his superb individual display and Rangers’ authority across the full 90 minutes.
Neil told Premier Sports that it had been an excellent collective performance and insisted Rangers thoroughly merited the win.
He explained that the team had defended effectively without possession in recent matches, but on this occasion they aimed to draw energy from the supporters and press their opponents aggressively. In his view, the players carried out that plan flawlessly.
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