Rangers' captain James Tavernier scored the opening goal in a 3-1 resounding Premiership victory over Hibernian at Easter Road to mark his 400th competitive appearance for the club.
With a 30-yard free kick in the 33rd minute, the Gers' right back beat Hibs goalkeeper David Marshall, and in the 55th, Ianis Hagi increased the visitors' advantage with his first goal since January 2022, before his protracted knee injury hiatus.
In the 88th minute, Todd Cantwell added a third, and in the extra period, Paul Hanlon of Hibs cut the margin in half.
Lee Johnson's team now trails Hearts in fourth position by four points and Aberdeen by six points. If Celtic defeats Inverness in the Scottish Cup final, European spots could become available up to fifth place in the league.
Prior to the Edinburgh derby match against Hearts on the last day of the season, Hibs will host Celtic on Wednesday.
With second place already secured, Rangers play Hearts at home to close the season before heading to St. Mirren on the final day.
When Michael Beale announced before the game that defender Connor Goldson was out for 10 weeks with an undisclosed injury, he already had a long injury list.
However, the Gers manager only made two adjustments to his starting lineup, replacing Hagi with Rabbi Matondo and Leon King, a 19-year-old center defender, with Hagi for his first start since November.
With a string of early corners, Tavernier put the Hibs defense under pressure. Defender John Souttar's header hit the crossbar, while midfielder Ryan Jack of the Gers accidently blocked King's header.
Hibs entered the game unchanged from last week's draw at Aberdeen, but Rangers remained the more threatening team. A clever move ended with striker Fashion Sakala forcing Marshall to make a save with a low shot.
The home team started to handle the Ibrox danger better, and in the 23rd minute, striker Kevin Nisbet almost missed with a header from a cross from Elie Youan after the Hibs wideman had overcome Tavernier.
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