Ivor Pandur knows one day your double is downing Celtic and the next you're punished in possession at Dens as he leaps to skipper's defence

Just 34 days previously, he’d been Rangers ’ driving force in their Old Firm win over Celtic.

On Saturday night, Dan Neil must have left Dens Park feeling like he’d thrown his team-mates under the bus.

The Ibrox skipper gave fans moments to remember with two derby goals in their Premier Sports Cup win last month.

But his mistake, which cost Rangers two points in Tayside, is something he’ll want to quickly forget.

Derek McInnes’ side were 2-1 up and had the game in the palm of their hands.

Stunning strikes from Badredine Bouanani and Nico Raskin gave them control after Dujon Sterling’s error allowed Dundee to grab a lead through Bradley Fink.

Just when it looked like Gers would score more and secure a vital three points, Neil was caught sleeping in his own half.

The captain was mugged by Callum Jones, who slotted past Ivor Pandur to give Steven Pressley’s side a share of the spoils.

It was a costly moment for Neil and Rangers.

It prevented them from going top of the Premiership table, for 24 hours at least.

And it proved just how fickle football can be, with Neil going from hero to villain.

But Croatian keeper Pandur refused to put any blame on the Rangers midfielder afterwards.

He says if McInnes’ men are going to achieve anything this season, they’ll do it by being together - rather than singling out individuals during tough moments.

Instead, Pandur hailed Neil as one of the key players in the Ibrox dressing-room.

And he believes Rangers should have had the game wrapped up long before his captain’s lapse in concentration.

The 26-year-old said: “Mistakes will happen in football. It’s a game of beautiful moments and of mistakes.

“One day it’s one, another day it’s the other.

“But we’re not a team who points fingers. As a whole, we created a lot and should have scored more.

“But it’s not about individuals here.

“You cannot take anything for granted in football. The reality is Dan is a great guy, an unbelievable player and really important for our team.

“That’s the reality. If he makes a mistake or scores a goal, that doesn’t change.

“He’ll continue to be important for us. It can happen to everybody and it does.

“For us, it’s about not getting into that position where one mistake really costs us the game.

“We could have been more in front and had an easier ending to the game.”

The contrast between Neil’s horror moment and Rangers’ two goals against Dundee was stark.

After falling behind, McInnes needed his big players to come up with something special and they did.

Bouanani, on just his second start for the club, justified his selection with a brilliant equaliser before half-time at Dens.

The Algerian produced a trademark finish into the top corner after cutting in from the right flank - the kind of goal that earned him a £13 million move to Stuttgart just over a year ago.

But if that was good, Raskin’s was even better.

The midfielder isn’t renowned for his long-range shooting.

But the dip and curl he managed to get on a 25-yard effort that nestled in the top corner, is something Pandur has rarely seen before.

The goalie just wishes it would have been Rangers’ winner.

He was irked afterwards that Neil’s mistake was being discussed more than Raskin’s wonder goal.

But he’s convinced that it won’t be the last time this season we see the Belgian conjure up a moment of magic.

He said: “I haven’t seen a better goal than Nico’s for a long time. That was supposed to be THE moment.

“That hurts me even more. That should have been the moment people talk about after the game.

“He scored an unbelievable goal and, like Dan, he’s really important for us.

“He’s also a great guy and that will have taken a bit out of him.

“But Nico will have more of those moments, and winning ones as well.”

The last time Rangers dropped Premiership points on Tayside, they didn’t win for four games in all competitions.

That was on the opening day of the season when McInnes’ side drew with Dundee United and he was still finding his feet as gaffer.

Friday night’s slip-up ended a seven-game winning run for Gers and it will be the manager’s job to ensure they quickly recover and don’t let it halt the momentum they’d built up.

Certainly, Pandur feels McInnes’ squad is better equipped now to deal with a setback than they were in August.

He’s adamant the team spirit they’ve fostered since then will see them dust themselves down, fix what went wrong at Dens Park - and be ready for Saturday’s Premiership clash with St Johnstone at Ibrox.

Pandur said: “Yeah (we’re in a better place now than after Tannadice game in Aug). We have togetherness and a good feeling between each other.

“We all support each other and we can get through this moment easily.

“We just need to get our heads down, see what was wrong and what can be done better to control the game a little bit more.

“That’s why we have a week now to train and improve.”