DMAA

I clarified in my response that I meant banned from press conferences No journalist would agree with that though, as I said a few pages back you only have to read about the Kaitlan Collins controversy to see that all journalists will always view a ban on a journalist attending press conference as a violation of the rights of the press. We're going round in circles, but for me the bottom line is we need to deal with the problem of unfair coverage in a way which doesn't mean we don't get any coverage at all. It's detrimental to the club and the fans.

I wouldn't say it means little. They've scored 5 in 3/5 of their league games so far, and that against decent teams who have been competitive in their other league games. One of them beat the champions Olimpija 2-0, and the Olimpija themselves have only won 1/5 so far. Maribor have made a flying start to the season and are in the habit of scoring lots of goals so there's every reason to believe that keeping a clean sheet is a big ask. And don't think they won't have clocked that we're going to be playing a centre midfielder at LB. They'll be targeting him big time. Part of me would be more comfortable with McCrorie tbh, especially aerially after seeing how AEK scored their second goal a couple of days ago. However, we blew them away last week and we've every reason to trust the management to know how to win the tie.

One question to ask is will Morelos’s value and reputation increase or decrease after a season under Gerrard? So far it looks very likely to be the former.

Two weeks in a row we’ve had a bid for a key player within 24 hours of a huge game

Too subtle because he is banned from press conferences and that’s enough.

I really hope we see Middleton get a game. His pace and direct running up the wing could be invaluable if we play on the counter.

This what's confused me. Since this bid, we've received about £3.8m in transfer fees (Windass, John, Waghorn) and spent £1.5m (Barisic), so we're up £2.3m. We've also shifted 7 players off the wage bill (Windass, John, Alves, Cardoso, Herrera, Docherty, Forrester) and only taken on two additional wages (Barisic, Kent). So from the time of the Cooper bid we're £2.3m up with a significantly smaller wage bill. This is why I thought we still had plenty left to spend. One explanation is that Gerrard is happier than expected with Katic so is only looking for a backup now rather than a starter so is happy to go for a loan. Could be too that they think the squad is looking better in general than expected and don't want to rock the boat so are happy to keep money back for January.

My point was really that we’ve already made moves for both positions with a net proposed spend of only a few hundred thousand. If they were waiting to see how Europe went they wouldn’t have already bid for Lafferty or Simpson surely. I’d have thought we would still be looking to spend a good amount of money but it doesn’t look like it.

Is it only me or does the money seem to have dried up for future signings? There are two positions we are definitely singings players for, Centre Forward and Centre Back. We're reluctant to pay 750k for a CF and we have tried to loan a player for CB. I had expected we'd still have at least £2m to spend but if we did it would surely be spent on those positions, so what's going on?

Would be a major boost if these guys were ready to come through. That's what we need as a club and there's always a danger of blocking their pathway with average senior backup players which ultimately prevents them from becoming better players. Very doubtful Rudden would leapfrog Hardie though. He's 3 years younger with no senior experience. Hardie has had 2 successful seasons in the Championship.

I'd agree with that. Can't rely on Sadiq to score goals when Morelos is suspended (it's going to happen ). Looks like it's going to be Lafferty who will be a more than capable backup. I'd hoped for a targetman who was a bit younger and could make us money but looks like it's not to be. Interesting that so far the only real link at CH is a loan player. Doesn't seem we have much money left to spend.

Changed days. Last time a Rangers side lost 2-1 to Falkirk it was our first team and included current players like Foderingham, Tav, Wallace, Halliday, Holt and £5m English Championship superstar Martyn Waghorn. Looks like they've done very well and could easily have scored a second. Going by the report it sounds like the Falkirk backline much preferred marking Sadiq to Middleton. I hope Middleton gets given more of a chance in the team because it seems clear he has more to offer than Sadiq at this stage. In contrast to a narrow defeat to a Championship side, Celtic's colts got pumped 4-0 to League 2 Annan Athletic

Not going to happen. They got a ridiculously easy draw, Lithuanian team who Red Star pumped 5-0 to put them out of the ECL.

There’s no doubt the hit to their coffers is good news for us but we’ve got our own game to get through in two nights time and it’s going to be tough.

Rangers know that this was inevitable though because press freedom is seen as a fundamental right for journalists. Any news organisation in the world would respond the same way if you banned one of their journalists because they see it as an attack on press freedom. Companies (including clubs) will never be allowed to decide which journalists can and can't attend their press conferences in western countries where freedom of the press is enshrined.

I understand frustration at this. I just think you thought I was drawing big conclusions from my comments when I wasn't. I made positive comments about Flanagan, Ejaria and Goldson. I praised Morelos but said he's not a natural finisher. I've more than a few games of him and although he's not a natural finisher and gives the ball away too much I've always defended him and think he's a top player. I praised Coulibaly but also said he's limited in possession and has been asked to keep it simple, Gerrard himself said this when we signed him. I praised Barisic too but said his touch and passing weren't the standard I expected, those comments were obviously only intended as first impression comments not absolute truths. I don't comment on individual players like that every week so it was just a bit frustrating to be equivocated with those guys who slate our players mindlessly all the time when I'm very positive about everyone in this team but don't have a problem with discussing these things.

When talking about the striking options I also agree that Murphy has a big role to play. The criticism of Murphy is very confusing. We are far less creative and dangerous without him. I think he'll have a big season.

Good listen again. In response to the title, a result against Maribor would be great on Thursday, but the only thing that'll get Scottish pundits to stop writing us off and talking us down is a result at Parkhead. Hopefully we're capable of it. With regards to Ross McCrorie, I think he's the ideal sub. Modest wages, but a great prospect and more than capable of stepping in when necessary and improving as a player. Contrast that to a couple of seasons back when we had aging players on huge wages on the bench with no prospect of improving as players (Kranjcar, Senderos). On Lafferty I tend to agree he's only worth so much, and 750k seems inflated given his contract situation. He's not the kind of player I'd have preferred either, but I'd feel very sorry for him if we walked away because of a couple of hundred thousand pounds.

100%. All they'd need is an audio only option. I'll quickly run out of data if I'm streaming video when I'm out and about.

I'm a parent in my 20s and I listen to the radio all the time because I'm on the go all the time. I don't have time to stop and look at my phone for any length of time. I'm listening to radio coverage of football whether I'm mowing the lawn, washing the car, driving here and there in the car or whatever. Newspaper has had it's day but radio is not going anywhere and unfortunately the BBC have a monopoly.

Watching the team this is the type of striker I thought we've needed too. We've played a lot of long ball, and we have some great crossers from both sides in the team now for the first time in a while with Barisic and Tavernier. Anyway we haven't been linked with anyone fitting that description so we'll just have to wait and see what happens with Lafferty. I think he'll get a warm welcome from everyone if he joins.

As I've said I think it is important indirectly though through the engagement of parents. The more engaged the parents are with the club the more they'll push their kids in the same direction by purchasing kits, magazines etc.

It's a vital reach. Most who would call themselves Rangers fans in Scotland are not die hards with a season ticket and RTV subscription. They're the kind who listen to the radio while washing the car and doing runs for the kids etc. Proper coverage of Rangers could be the difference in whether these guys buy Rangers strips for their kids, who have probably picked an English team already. It's far more detrimental than people realise to be ignored on Saturdays by the BBC. They are the national broadcaster and we can't change that.

Well that's what it's all about, that's why it's so damaging. A football club needs coverage. Why do you think so many kids primarily support English clubs these days? Because they're watching their games! They don't miss Match of the Day. When I was young I supported Inter Milan on the side because I would watch Football Italia with James Richardson on Saturday mornings. You can't underestimate the importance of having coverage of your games. And that applies to the hundreds of thousands of lukewarm fans out there too, it's not just about recruiting new fans.

Surely nobody is alleging that literally all their coverage of us is "dripping with anti-Rangers sentiment"? I've listened to who knows how many Rangers games over the radio over the years and have very rarely had an issue with any of it. After all 99% of it is live coverage of facts with no opinion. It's not true that every single BBC employee is anti-Rangers. I'm pretty sure most Celtic fans would allege Chick Young is anti-Celtic.