JFK-1

Completely dominant and never looked like losing but frustrating we didn't score more. Could easily have been 5 or 6. Hopefully it will come together with increasing match fitness and familiarity.

We're all anxious largely due to previous disappointment. SG seems confident so i'm getting into his confidence.

Rangers boss Steven Gerrard won't accept complacency as memories of Progres come to the fore ahead of Europa League campaign THE time for talking is over. Now, actions will speak louder than words for Rangers. Twelve months ago, the messages coming out of Pedro Caixinha’s camp were positive and plentiful as the Portuguese, with a host of summer signings behind him, looked forward to the start of the new season. One night in Luxembourg changed it all, though. Within weeks, Caixinha was gone and a remarkable, if short-lived, era came to an end. That is the fate that Steven Gerrard must avoid this evening. The consequences for the 38-year-old and his players may not be as severe this time around but Rangers can’t allow FK Shkupi to follow Progres Niederkorn’s example in the Europa League. That result in the Stade Josy Barthel will never be forgotten and those at the epicentre of the shockwave will never be forgiven for their part in the most embarrassing night in Rangers’ history. Now, another manager and another group of players will set out in continental competition and bid for domestic silverware. Having talked the talk, they must now walk the walk this season. “I remember it coming across the yellow bar on Sky Sports News,” Gerrard said. “You were like; ‘Woah, that’s not going to go down well.’ “I certainly don’t want to have that surprise on Thursday night at quarter to 11, certainly not. “Yes [a bad result could kill the feel-good factor], but that’s nothing that we can control. “We’re happy that there is an expectation and that there is a positivity about, but the players have to handle that responsibility and that pressure that is part of this club. “Every player that comes into this club does an interview and says it’s great to be part of Rangers, one of the most successful clubs in the world, and they are at a big club now, but now you have got to go and perform and accept that. “You have to play under pressure and enjoy that pressure and thrive on it. We can’t have players who are going to sink, because that’s when the problems happen.” Plenty, of course, has changed at Rangers since that 2-0 defeat to Progres and supporters are once again full of optimism ahead of the new campaign. There are only a handful of survivors 12 months on but it is the switch in the dugout that is arguably the most significant and important. The Shkupi clash will be Gerrard’s first competitive match as Gers boss and he won’t allow any complacency to creep in ahead of the visit of the Macedonian minnows. “I hope it is in the back of their mind and I hope they are determined, they have to be,” Gerrard said of those that will seek the slightest of redemption this time around. “A club this size shouldn’t lose games of football like that. “We have to show this team respect and show the competition respect. There are no gimmies, no walkovers. “We will approach the game right and show the level of intensity and desire that we have done in the friendly games. If we do, I am sure we won’t have a problem. “We are not good enough at the moment to take our foot off the gas or be complacent or be enjoying ourselves. “We have got tons of work to do, tons of improvement, before we can be relaxed and pick and choose when we turn up. I don’t expect any complacency and if I see it in any individuals, I won’t be happy.” Rangers know all too well the perils of playing qualifiers at this time of the season with a squad that is still not up to speed. Four ties stand between the Light Blues and the group stages but Gerrard won’t set targets for his players as he approaches the first hurdle. He said: “Other people will judge it and consider it a success. My job is to get us through to the next round and that is my priority at the moment. “We are not sure who we are going to be facing if we progress further down the competition so there is no point putting any targets on it. “We will take it one stage at a time. I think that was probably part of the problem last year, being drawn against the team from Luxembourg and thinking ‘who have we got in the next round and what is happening there?’ All of a sudden, bang. There you go. There is the slap in the face for you.” The first competitive outing of the campaign is a moment that Gerrard, and the Ibrox crowd, have waited some time for. His appointment in May rejuvenated the supporters and there won’t be a spare seat in the house for a meeting with opponents few would have heard of until the draw was made. That level of backing brings an added pressure in itself but the expectation is nothing new for Gerrard as he embarks on the next stage of his glittering career. "I can't wait,” he said. “I am very proud and very humble to be the Rangers manager and go out in front of a full house for a Europa League qualifier. “I think it shows the level of support and how big this football club is. You are getting 41,000 for a friendly against Bury in the middle of the summer when there is one of the biggest games of the World Cup on the TV. “These fans are incredible. There will be no prouder man than me tomorrow. “It is more excitement. I have got every confidence and belief in the players and the team that they can go out and do the job. “The team talk is already done, someone done that for me 12 months ago. I am not nervous or scared, I can’t wait to walk out there and get the game going and the lads are really ready for it.” It was in the previous incarnation of this competition that Gerrard experienced of his first real highs in the game as he lifted the UEFA Cup in 2001. He and Ibrox assistant Gary McAllister both scored in the Westfalenstadion as Gérard Houllier’s side beat Alaves 5-4 after extra time. Gerrard said: “I think the competition now has got its spark, its buzz and its mojo back certainly with the winners getting access to the Champions League. “I thought when that wasn’t available, it was obviously playing second fiddle to the Champions League and there was a huge gap. “But now, it’s got a bit of spark and mojo back. “Obviously, I have fantastic memories of winning it as a 20-year-old kid and I managed to get on the scoresheet in the final, which capped off a great year winning the treble. “Lifting the trophy is a fantastic experience, it’s a huge trophy – and very heavy – so I’ll never play it down, but I won’t argue that you can compare it to the Champions League, it’s a different animal.” http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/sport/16348096.rangers-boss-steven-gerrard-wont-accept-complacency-as-memories-of-progres-come-to-the-fore-ahead-of-europa-league-campaign/

I'm taking it for granted that Gerrard is an elite professional who takes no chances and certainly not in the first competitive game of his managerial career. He knows full well this is exactly what from the outset defined Pedro last season.

This may actually be an ideal game to give us an inkling of how they're going to perform against the bulk of the SPL opposition who will come to Ibrox during the season. I suspect Shkupi will come out with an objective of trying not to lose or at worst trying not to lose by too many. They will probably sit in tight and try to weather the storm while we know from experience that's exactly what the bulk of the SPL will do too and we also know we frequently had trouble trying to break that down last season.

It's going to be horses for courses according to Gerrard himself who has previously commented that we can't be playing exactly the same style against all opposition. I think we already have options and probably still more to come.

I'm looking for this defence to be watertight given the money that's been put into it.

I loved that too. Scrutinising them closely he will be and anyone not going at it it full blast will be noted and dealt with accordingly. "phonies pretending with little crazy jogs"

I shared it on a Rangers fans abroad facebook group.

Millwall fans fear worst Some Millwall fans are beginning to fear the worst after Glasgow Rangers' interest in Jake Cooper reportedly developed into multiple bids from the Ibrox side. The Daily Mail claims Rangers are now close to meeting Cooper's release clause, having submitted an offer worth £3 million for the Millwall defender. And while many Millwall fans were initially confident about keeping one of last season's star men - a few even demanding up to eight figures for Cooper - doubts appear to be creeping in. Should Cooper leave for Rangers, he would become Steven Gerrard's third central defensive recruit since taking over in May. Connor Goldson and Nikola Katic have already arrived at Ibrox, where David Bates and Russell Martin have departed since the end of last season, with Bruno Alves and Fabio Cardoso likely to follow. http://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2018/07/11/some-millwall-fans-fear-worst-after-rangers-make-improved-offer/

IT’S a warm welcome back to the Official Rangers Podcast and a new format for the new campaign. https://rangers.co.uk/news/headlines/official-rangers-podcast-returns/

This may be the best window we have ever had in terms of the research that has gone into each acquisition. A good mixture of youth and experience and a lot of height. We might have the tallest average height in the league. Morelos is going to look even shorter on the pitch among all those giants.

The boy appears to be happy/excited about the move and I would say a shade starstruck by Gerrard. Let's see what he can do. I think his English is a bit of a struggle for him. Can see him searching for words but more than good enough to understand what the manager has to say to him. And I love the way Gerrard handles the things he doesn't want to talk about at this stage. The press pack are quickly learning they can't harangue him.

Think we might all have guessed there would be significant changes to the defence. But not at the cost of 8 million.

This is Scotland, i'm more than confident there are similar occurrences in the opposite direction when the opposite side conduct their own marches.

Club Necaxa till December 31st 2018. Guessing Gerrard decided that in the circumstances I don't have the time or inclination to deal with a situation like this. Hard enough trying to gel a new squad without having to deal with that situation.

Somewhat funny. I was typing my reply to Bill as you were posting this and I too referred to visiting the sheep pen.

Undecided. If we slaughter the sheep in their sheep pen on August 5th I might think we're going places. But then again I thought we were better than them last season and simply didn't play to capabilities. Gerrard is still an unknown managerial quantity but I doubt he will tolerate slackers not fighting for every ball. That alone is an improvement on top of what appears to be a better squad.

So what will we be saying if for example they hit 6 again on Thursday night just as they did against Bury? Just more inferior opposition?

I just googled Europa league here in Oklahoma and when you consider that search results are different in different locations it’s interesting that all the top suggestions it threw up were about Rangers.

Steven Gerrard has admitted to The Scottish Heraldthat he wouldn't dream of asking Rangers fans for patience ahead of his first season in management. The Gers host FK Shkupi at Ibrox on Thursday for what is the beginning of their journey toward Europa League qualification. It will also be Gerrard's very first competitive match as manager of a senior football team, having only managed Liverpool's Under-18 side prior to taking the reins in Glasgow back in May. Hiring the 38-year-old is undoubtedly a big risk by Rangers' hierarchy, given his lack of experience. But the Blues' stature as a football club, coupled with Celtic's domination in Scotland under Brendan Rodgers, means that Gerrard has to hit the ground running. However, it is widely accepted that the legendary midfielder might need time in which get the best out of his Rangers team, but Gerrard has no intention of asking the Ibrox faithful for any. "It is difficult for me to ask for patience and say this should happen, that should happen, because these fans want better and they deserve better," he told The Scottish Herald. "This is the most successful club out there so it is a difficult thing to do to ask for patience. Players have to be ready for the pressure and the responsibility of being a Rangers player. "If you can’t handle it you are in the wrong place.” http://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2018/07/08/steven-gerrard-doesnt-want-patience-from-rangers-fans/

Coulibaly a 6 footer while Sadiq is closer to 6 foot 4. We appear to be transforming from a team who were often thought to have been bullied by opposition last year into a team of giants who it would seem unlikely will be bullied by anyone. Exciting times. Haven't been so eager for a new season to start in a very long time indeed. Scores to be settled. How I would love to give the Lennon brigade a humiliating bloody nose. His next aeroplane antics may be a crash landing.

Bury fans been saying some very nice things about their visit. Small sample of many.

I feel sorry for you if you think a 'sing song' ever intimidated anybody. The only thing that can is a large roaring crowd and it's irrelevant whether they're sitting or standing. If you doubt that then you're entitled to your opinion but as an aside to mention of standing again an electrifying attacking performance gets people on their feet as well as roaring. No rendition of penny serenade will.

No 'sing song' will electrify me at a match. What will electrify me and get me roaring is an electrifying performance with a team going at it all out.