Rousseau

As much as defensive complacency plays its part, those goals were seriously fortunate: a worldy snap-shot and a silly volley that deflects in? Fortunate. I don't think we're shielding the centre-backs enough though. It's been difficult to break them down, with their park-the-bus tactics, as we expected. And although we've created a few good chances, we've been a little slow. Miller has been poor, but the pitch is doing him no favours. We could do with Hardie!

Ha! Not bad for a team prediction, eh? Strong side, with more offensive ability. We need to score today, so Ball is a luxury; Halliday offers more offensively. I reckon it'll be a tricky game. Raith are always well organised and don't concede many goals. The players should know what's at stake, so it's up to them to go out and do the job.

Stark's Park -- A seemingly innocuous away trip to Fife could see us finally cross the line in our long struggle to regain our place in the Scottish top flight. Although we could cross the line today, we are dependent on Hibernian dropping more points -- not out of the question considering their recent form -- and need to make sure we do our jobs. A win is not as easy as it appears, as games against Raith have been very tight. Rovers have been on an excellent run of form, winning 7 of their last 9, including a 2-1 victory against Hibs. Their last defeat was against Rangers at Ibrox in a tight affair where goals from Forrester and Wallace gave us a narrow 2-0 win. Raith's form has seen them consolidate a play-off spot -- the other play-off hopefuls will not get an easy game against them. Rangers meanwhile have bounced back after a first defeat in 15 against Falkirk, winning a pulsating game against Queen of the South 4-3. The stuttering victory was only ensured after a superb period just after half-time where 3 goals were scored in quick succession. Three goals conceded suggest the defensive frailties have re-appeared after it seemed we were starting to tighten up at the back. Meetings between the two sides this season have been tight. Despite Raith being the only championship side yet to score against us this term, Rangers have only scored 1 or 2 goals against them -- omitting the 5-0 thrashing early on in September. Raith play a solid 4-4-2, with young, disciplined players throughout the side. On loan Ranger Ryan Hardie (who has raced to being Rovers' 4th top scorer this season dispite playing only a handful of games) is ineligible. But on-loan Leicester forward Harry Panayiotou returns to the squad following international duty for St Nevis and Kitts. Forward Ryan McCord is always lively and will be dangerous on the counter. Likewise Rangers will have Barrie McKay and Billy King available for selection again after international duty for the U-21's. Long-term absentees Templeton, Bell and Waghorn remain sidelined, but Zelalem seems to have recovered from his illness and will likely take his place on the bench. The return of the youngsters, again from international duty, will see them bolster the bench. I suspect McKay will return to the first-team, with Forrester reverting to a midfield position alongside Holt and Halliday, with Ball returning to the bench. I predict a line-up of: Foderingham Tavernier - Kiernan - Wilson - Wallace © Holt - Halliday - Forrester O'Halloran - Miller - McKay Going by recent form and previous meetings, a tight game is on the cards. Our defensive frailties suggest we could quite easily concede today, but with the title within our grasp I suspect we should see a strong offensive performance. Score early and we could see a scoreline similar to the early 5-0 game, but if Raith keep us at bay for the first half-hour or so, then we could be in for a long afternoon. Again, patience and craft in the final third is key.

No bother, I'll put something together -- I've got a bit on time on my hands.

I can cobble one together for today if needed?

Sorry guys, I've not really done many of these. I'll do the Dumbarton game if it's free?

I still think Little was better than his achievements/performances with us suggest. Ironically, he suits Warburton's game more IMO. I would have liked to have seen him stay around.

You can see the beginnings of this philosophy being implemented at Rangers. The real test will be what happens when Warburton leaves. I'd like to think what he's started will be continued, giving us a glimpse of La Masia at Murray park. Interesting that the Barca fans were crying out for balls lumped into the box at the beginning! Clearly, it's worked well for them, but the change in 'culture' on the terraces will take time. There is no doubt it's the right way. We just need to be patient. Good read.

No discussion needed. Superb.

I saw the third goal again (from Queens) and although Wilson did indeed turn his back on the shot, he was too far away to do anything about it; it was Halliday (throwing himself at nothing) and the other midfielder failing to close the space that was to blame IMO. If the midfield stay on their feet and close the space, the goal doesn't happen. The second we conceded was just mentally switching off -- even then it was lucky to find the net.

I think it was a bit of both. Omitting the penalty (Wallace slipped IMO), the second was switching off mentally and the third was dropping too deep and not closing down the man. We need to do better. It's not the whole game too; just when certain players go off. It doesn't excuse it though.

I know what you mean, but as long as it translates to better performances on the pitch, it doesn't really matter. We may have to step it up for the Prem? Same formula, but more of them?

Absolutely. Just going through the motions during longer sessions won't be too beneficial IMO. As long as it translates to better performances on the pitch.

What was King saying?

Sloppy goals to concede. We'll take the win though. We played very well for large spells, but the way we make it hard for ourselves will be a worry; it was mostly when Ball and Holt went off, so we'll need better replacements for those guys. How that cheat Russell stayed on the pitch I'll never know: clutching his face when he deliberately handled the ball? Embarrassing. (Falkirk lost 1-2 to Livingston.)

O'Halloran is getting very frustrated as he can't get into the game; he's working hard though.

We're struggling to break them down, with Queens playing quite an aggressive press. Despite that, we are controlling the game I feel. I'd like to see a few more long-balls; the few times we've tried it, to bypass their press, it's looked promising.

Quite clear why Warburton felt the need to postpone games if we lost a couple of players in the past -- only 5 players on the bench!

Diddums...

The fact that his boyhood team is being questioned is pointless -- typical Scottish 'journalism'. If he wants to play for us and he his talented enough (not in that order), then bears will not have any issue at all. Looks like a decent prospect. It's nice to see us get linked with these guys, rather than the 'experienced', journeyman -types. If he's good enough, get him signed! We can never have enough young prospects!

Can we not just give it to all of them? McKay for YPOTY, and It would be Wallace for POTY in my opinion -- too many good contributors to give them both to McKay!

Undoubtedly mistakes were made, but it's how we react to them; we have done rather well in that regard thus far. It's a strong side; a probable side. It's amazing how the squad looks now. Before, 'lean' and 'tight' were bandied about, and although it is still those things, we actually have some good options up front. McKay and King are missing, but the squad still looks strong. Quality over quantity.

I don't necessarily want to see us scoring 2 and then defending it out. I agree we should have tightened up when they came back into it, but that's difficult to put across during the game (or without a team talk at half-time, for example). To be fair, we have learned in the past to be less gung-ho; Tavernier and Wallace are not as 'rampaging' as they used to be. It was reminiscent of the previous game: I am annoyed that we didn't have a plan to protect Tavernier. I'm hopeful it'll be rectified. I'm not sure I want to see players necessarily taking that type of responsibility during the game; it's up to them to implement what the manager wants; otherwise we have every player doing whatever they want. I'm all for a player 'directing' and organising, but we need a cohesive game-plan, not several players doing what they want, or going against the manager. I'll admit that's not Wallace's strength (directing). He seems to prefer just implementing what the manager wants, which I actually like, but I'll concede that we need a player that is willing to direct a little. (Perhaps not the best time for this particular article!)

The article wasn't really a response to that game, merely a response to his slight shift in position etc., but I agree with you. The changes made weren't bad -- O'Halloran, Forrester and Clark in theory don't slow the game down -- but I thought the main issue was mentality. We thought it was over; we weren't as sharp and, as the manager said, took too many touches. We can learn from it, as the team has done many times this season, and move on. As for Captain material, I'm not sure the 'ranter and raver' is really necessary any more. We have a few players that will hurt after a game, and I'm sure they'll have words with each other, but I don't think taking someone by the scruff of the neck is really necessary. Wallace is more of a leader by example. His understanding of the philosophy is important and beneficial. He did put a shoulder round Burt when he came on, so he does take that type of responsibility. Getting wound-up and angry in games can benefit some, but I'm sure for many others that is detrimental. I prefer the calmness he brings to the game and dressing room; he leads by example, providing the basis for the players to carry out their jobs on the pitch. I was just impressed by his self-improvement off the pitch and his tactical/positional switch. It was the managers doing, but it takes a player willing and with a tactical/positional awareness to implement it.

Following on from the excellent Gersnet article on Lee Wallace earlier this month, I thought it would be appropriate to add to it with an overview of the tactical progress our captain has made over the past few years. Bought as a rampaging full-back, Lee Wallace has transformed himself into a Guardiola-esque full-back, demonstrating a tactical awareness all too lacking in the Scottish game. The thoughtful full-back arrived on the cusp of our demotion, and had to show loyalty and determination at a time of great adversity. The young Wallace was born in Edinburgh in 1987, and like many youngsters, he would gravitate towards football. Showing promise, he eventually made his way through the Hearts Youth Academy, making his first-team debut at 17. The Hearts Academy has been relatively successful over the past decade or so, churning out talented youngsters who would go on to play at a decent level. Early on he was showing the raw running ability that would become his trademark, when in 2006 he would score his first goal for Hearts in the Scottish Cup by running a full 70-yards to stroke the ball into the net. It was this powerful running game that brought the 23 year-old to the attention of McCoist's Rangers in 2011. Tactically lacking, McCoist always would prefer the powerful, athletic footballers over the next few years; the rampaging full-back fit the bill perfectly. Signed for £1.5m, Wallace would face strong competition at left-back, with stand-out Sasa Papac ahead in the pecking-order. He was not put-off however, saying "I'll be working hard [...] to push my way into the team and capture the success". Wallace was aware of the challenge, and was only looking forward to learning: "These are top players [...] I can learn from. Training with these players every day can only benefit me and that's what I'm looking for. I'll certainly be working hard to try to progress into the team". Unfortunately for Wallace, this would be the highest level he would play at for quite some time, as Rangers were unceremoniously demoted by the SFA, who hypocritically cited "sporting integrity". He could easily have left along with the other first-team players -- the ones he so looked forward to learning from -- but chose to stay faithful to the club; one of only three first-team players that did so. The full-back would devote himself to regaining Rangers' rightful place at the top of Scottish Football, and looked to improve himself as a footballer. (It seems many of the deserters could have learned something from him...) To become a more complete player, the relatively young Wallace would put himself through his coaching badges. Keen on Frank DeBoer, he did his thesis on Ajax, assessing their strengths and weaknesses, looking to understand their philosophy and way of playing. He unashamedly describes himself as a "geek" in these matters, stating he is "relentless [and] borderline insane when it comes to studying and research". His first choice subject for his thesis was Barcelona, but a friend got there first, so he had to settle for doing a little personal work on them, reading several books on Guardiola. Wallace is never happier than when studying team formations and philosophies, which can only stand himself and Rangers in good stead for the future -- the only negative being he was willing to give such analysis to Neil Lennon's Celtic in preparation for their defeat against Ajax! Displaying loyalty, tactical awareness and a desire for self-improvement, Wallace was named captain by Mark Warburton. Following in the footsteps of greats like Greig, Butcher and Gough, Wallace would wear the armband with pride, leading in his own way. Never a 'ranter and raver', Wallace looked to bring an air of calm to a distressed dressing room, seeking to lead by example. In the modern-era, an understanding of the teams philosophy is key; Wallace seeks to lead by demonstrating this understanding, ensuring Rangers lead the way, suggesting "[the] other teams should be watching us". Signed for his qualities as a rampaging full-back, a mid-season 'crisis' brought a halt to this 'to-hell-with-the-consequences' running game. After a series of disappointing results where too many goals and points were conceded, Warburton sought to tighten up the defence, admitting that Rangers were a little too gung-ho. As a result, the full-backs were more disciplined in their positioning. It is testament to his tactical awareness that Wallace can adapt to a more disciplined game, whilst still providing a strong attacking threat. A subtle positional shift by Warburton has allowed Wallace to utilise this running game in a new way. As in Chess, the centre is the main zone; control the centre of the pitch, you control the game. The reason for this is quite simple: the choices are greater in the middle of the pitch. Theoretically, if a player has the ball on the wing he is restricted by the touchline into only having a 180-degree view of the game. Whereas a player in the centre theoretically has a 360-degree view of the game. Simple maths. Of course, receiving the ball in the middle is difficult because there are more defenders to block the way to goal; loosing the ball in the centre is also often more dangerous. Wing-play is the opposite. A player receives the ball with less pressure, with only a full-back to press him. The danger of loosing the ball out wide is less dangerous because you have your defensive players set up centrally. Half-spaces provide the best of both worlds. The half-spaces are the channels, the space in between the centre column and flank. By taking up positions in the half-spaces, a player can simultaneously occupy a more central position, therefore having a greater view of the game in front of him, and move away from the more congested central defensive zone. This opens-up the diagonal passes. A typical defensive position will see a 4-4-2 zonal defense. If the attacking team move to the right flank, the defensive team shuffles across. If the attacking team move the ball to the centre, the defensive team tightens-up. Moving the ball horizontally gains little territory, but forces the defensive team to move alongside; vertical passes gain a lot of territory, but the defensive team merely has to drop deeper. By occupying the half-spaces, a player can open up diagonal passes (both short and long) to gain territory, which in turn forces the opposition into more complex moves, both horizontal and back. It is with these ideas that Guardiola has tuned his full-backs to target the half-space. Bayern Munich's Bernat, Lahm and Alaba will start at full-back, but instead of drifting wide, they will drift inside to take the half-space. This has the effect of freeing space for the natural winger, dominating the centre of the pitch and providing more diagonal passes. Lahm has made this position his own. Over the last few games Wallace has incorporated this tactical awareness into his game, taking up position in the half-space so he is effective playing centre-midfield. A typically Scottish response to this change in position was "Lahm eat your heart out". By doing so, Wallace allows Rangers to dominate the centre, strengthen the middle column against any counter-attack and provide more passing options for our possession game. Moreover, his running power is used more centrally within the half-spaces, providing a difficult defensive task for any defense: do you man-mark leaving the gaps for Holt and Miller to exploit? Or do you play zonal and allow him to penetrate directly through your defense? The club, bereft of many of our recent stars after 2012, has in many ways found a better one; one that espouses all the qualities of a modern, tactically proficient player with the grit and determination to develop, and to always look to the future. Wallace's raw running ability steered his game towards that of a rampaging full-back, but his self-confessed 'geekiness' and constant need for self-improvement has seen him develop into a cultured, Guardiola-esque full-back, demonstrating a tactical awareness all too lacking in the Scottish game. His loyalty and understanding in the face of great adversity for our club has endeared him to many. The thoughtful Captain, leading by example, is a modern-day full-back.