Cyriel Dessers declared himself “proud” of his Rangers scoring record as he explained how he has learned to deal with the intense scrutiny of his game since he arrived at Ibrox almost two years ago.

The 30-year-old Nigeria international notched the opener in Sunday’s 1-1 draw at home to Celtic to take his goal tally to 25 this term and 47 in total since he joined from Cremonese in 2023.

Despite scoring more than any other Scottish Premiership player across the past two seasons, Dessers has been maligned by pundits and sections of the Gers support throughout his time at Ibrox.

“I think if two years ago, the day I signed, you would tell the fans, ‘this striker is going to score 47 goals in two seasons’, I think everybody would have said, ‘oh, yes, please’,” said Dessers when asked about the criticism of his game. “And I did it until now. It could have been more. It could have been less.

“It hurt me a lot in the beginning, but now I kind of moved past that and I’m just focusing on myself and helping the team out. But if you put it that way, in a team with a lot of ups and downs to score 25 goals, I think that’s a good achievement and I’m proud of that.”

Dessers explained seeing long-serving captain James Tavernier continue to be heavily criticised has helped him accept he will always struggle to win over sections of Gers’ fanbase.

“There was a point where I wished I could turn it (the negative perception) around,” he said. “But if I see, for example, the criticism somebody like Tav sometimes gets with the things he achieved at this club, then I think it’s always going to be there, which is okay.

“It’s part of being at a big club like Rangers. You can feel the hurt in the fans and they always want more and better. But that’s also what we want as players. I know it’s not always easy, but we all want to go in the same direction together with the fans.”

Dessers is contracted to Rangers until the summer of 2027 and hopes to remain part of the club as they prepare to begin their journey under new American owners this summer, with Andrew Cavenagh and the 49ers Enterprises group close to completing their much-hyped takeover.

“I signed here with a clear intention, I want to win trophies with Rangers, stay here for a few years, build on something,” said Dessers. “That’s my intention.”

Interim boss Barry Ferguson has not given up hope of staying on despite winning just four of his 12 games in charge. Dessers has been impressed by the passion of the former Gers skipper since he took the reins in late February.

“I think Barry came in at a very difficult moment for the club,” said the striker. “We were very deep and he got us out of it. He brought some togetherness to the team.

“Also, he noticed that we have difficulties with being consistent and performing week in, week out, at home and away. It’s not easy for him, but I think he showed something.

“He knows the club in and out. He has the DNA of the club inside him. If I look at his speech before the (Celtic) game, you feel the Rangers DNA. He can transfer that to the group as well and I think that’s a big positive point for him.”