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  1. One of the earliest games I remember between St Mirren and Rangers was the 1962 Scottish Cup Final. The semi-finals had Rangers beating Motherwell 3-1 at Hampden, at the same time as the Grand National. Meanwhile at Ibrox St Mirren were 3-0 up against Celtic when their fans invaded the field. Eventually order was restored and the game ended 3-1 St Mirren. The final was a fairly straightforward 2-0 win for the Gers with Brand and Wilson scoring. Our team that day was: Ritchie, Shearer, Caldow, Davis, McKinnon, Baxter, Henderson, McMillan, Millar, Brand and Wilson -- What a team! George McLean stood out for St Mirren that day and we duly signed him. He was obviously a talented player but did not live up to his promise. He and Jim Forrest never played for Rangers again after the Berwick Rangers defeat. Anyway, onwards and upwards. St Mirren will obviously play a defensive set-up against us on Saturday so hopefully we provide some attacking threat. St Mirren have a new Manager in charge, Oran Kearney, who was appointed in September after the sacking of Alan Stubbs. The former PE teacher had a successful spell at Coleraine winning the Irish Cup for the first time in 15 years and, just before leaving, brought about a 3-0 win against reigning champions Crusaders. Kearney brought swagger and ambition, declaring on his appointment, "I want to win the league because the day I started [at Coleraine] I wanted titles and trophies." Clearly, St Mirren are nowhere near that level, and their start has been bumpy to say the least. St Mirren have lost 6 of their last 7 matches, although they did manage a 0-0 draw against Celtic in Kerney's first game in charge -- perhaps a warning if Rangers don't approach this game with the right frame of mind. Hopefully Tavernier recovers his form after an indifferent spell. I expect the team to be along the same lines as Wednesday, although with McGregor coming back between the posts. Possible XI: McGregor Tavernier - Goldson - Worral - Flanagan Halliday - Coulibaly Candeias - Arfield - Kent Morelos
  2. In one week we went through a whole catalogue of emotions. Love, hate, desperation, frustration, anger and sadness. The only one that we seemed to miss out on is happiness. On Sunday the level of expectation was so high against a poor Aberdeen team that most of us never even contemplated a defeat. Well actually we all knew where our weak point is. We knew how Aberdeen would play. It is in fact the way virtually all the Scottish teams with the exception of Celtic, Hearts and possibly Kilmarnock our opponents on Wednesday have played against us. Kilmarnock and Hearts both paid the price both falling to a 3-1 defeat. Recently Livingston snatched victory from us by parking the bus and waiting for that one chance coming from a set play moment. I actually believe it has become a tactic to defend in numbers punt the ball up to the loan forward to do his best to get free kicks around our penalty area. Back in the day an Aberdeen team would have come out and made a game of it but it seems they have dropped down to the role of a diddy team with diddy team tactics. I must admit though it is all about the end result and Aberdeen are in the final and we are left licking our wounds. We can't complain though it is also a tactic Rangers have used in the past and I remember Barcelona filling the papers with the same complaint that we parked the bus and played negative football in a European game. Daniel Cousin played the loan striker role that day and could have snatched victory in the end for us missing a chance in the dying minutes. So now it is time to use that old, no antique, cliché that football managers use. “We will now have to get up, brush ourselves down and go again.” As I mentioned Kilmarnock tried to play football at Rugby park and we beat them 3-1. Steve Clark was sitting in the stand watching the game and will also be well aware of what has been our achilles heel over the last few months. Not being able to break down packed defences. Rangers will play to dominate so Clark has a decision to make in parking the bus hoping for a breakaway goal or try to come out and play football. For Killie there is a danger in parking the bus as it is not their normal game so they will have to adopt to a whole different style as they are used to. Do they have the disciplined defenders to do it? Well we all know Kirk Broadfoot is willing to use all devious methods to stop anyone. One thing about them over the last few weeks is that they have been giving away the first goal. If they park the bus and lose a goal then they would need to completely change their whole game plan. I don't believe Killie will come and park the bus. Yes they will try and keep it tight at the back as every team should do but it is not their style and I think it would be suicide for them to try it. They also have good players in Jordon Jones Greg Stewart and you can never give Kris Boyd get a yard in the box. Kris may talk a better game than he can play these days but I suppose that is open to argument from both sides. Well we all know Rangers won't be the same team as Thursday night. The hugely obvious change will be the return of Alfredo Morelos. We saw TV pictures of him in the stand with his grumpy face on and I really hope he was thinking that a part of that defeat against Aberdeen lay in his hands for getting a stupid yellow card. We really did miss him on Sunday. Not only is he our highest scorer but his link up play is also a huge part of everything that is good in this Rangers team. Apart from that the team will not be much different. McGregor will play in goals, with a back line of Tavernier. Goldsen Worrel and Flanagan. Flanagan for me is a slightly better defender than Hodson was but offers totally nothing going forward and is part of our problem on playing sideways to Goldson or Worrel. I doubt Wallace will ever return so we really need another good full-back who can play forward in my eyes. I would play Halliday in place of Flanagan. Rangers were at their best when Coulibaly and Jack played together in a 4-2-3-1 set-up so hopefully our manager will go off the 4-3-3 and move back to our best tactical positions. I would like to see Ejaria, Arfield and Kent in the midfield with Morelos leading the line. I love Candeias but he is so predictable and his final ball is poor. My team is: McGregor Tavenier Goldson Worrel Halliday Coulibaly Jack Ejaria Arfield Kent Morelos
  3. After what was a fairly frustrating European night at Ibrox during the week, the big games keep on coming for Rangers. The clocks might only be going back later tonight as we approach Halloween but already we've played 22 games this season. And, so far at least, progress has been pretty good. Sure, league defeats away to Celtic and Livingston may have blotted Steven Gerrard's copy book and our form generally has actually been quite inconsistent as opposed to exceptional but you'd be hard pressed to find a truly unhappy Rangers fan considering where we were this time last season after the sacking of Pedro Caixinha exactly a year ago. With a plethora of new players brought in by Gerrard and an almost entirely new backroom staff as well, the turnaround in quality has been notable, if not (understandably) wholly reliable yet. Indeed, it was interesting to catalogue the palpable disappointment after Thursday's draw against Spartak Moscow. Rangers fans' expectations are always high so hell mend any player or manager who doesn't appreciate that - even if the bigger picture is often ignored by some critics. Strangely enough though, we're still only 5th in the Ladbrokes Premiership and although we sit top of our Europa League section, without genuine demonstrable success and a real challenge to Celtic it's difficult to consider any progress made so far as anything other than circumstantial. To that end the only way to change the status quo is to keep winning and to bring silverware back to Ibrox. Winning the Europa League is improbable but lifting the Scottish League Cup is achievable and we can take another step towards that by beating Aberdeen at Hampden tomorrow afternoon. Aberdeen, for all their own faults, will present their usual stiff challenge. Yes, their fans may not have bought into Sunday's game (literally it seems going by their embarrassing ticket sales) but you can be sure their players will. They might be five points behind us in the league but, just like Hamilton last weekend, they will raise their game and if we show the same kind of complacency and poor form we did in Lanarkshire then passage into the Betfred Cup final will be far from certain. Interestingly, it may be in attack that both sides could have trouble tomorrow. Rangers have scored plenty in their 22 games this season but will have no recognised striker tomorrow. Meanwhile Aberdeen have only scored 16 goals in their 13 games so we'll be hoping they struggle up front once more. In terms of the Rangers team, replacing the impressive form of Alfredo Morelos will be our most difficult task at Hampden. The Columbian has scored just four goals less than the whole Aberdeen team this season so far but his creative play and leading of the line may arguably be missed more. With usual deputy Kyle Lafferty ineligible and our only other striker Umar Sadiq unreliable, it's very difficult suggest an alternative. Glenn Middleton can score goals so may be the most favoured candidate but can he live with the physical nature of the Aberdeen back line? Or does Gerrard move in-form Ryan Kent further forward given Eros Grezda still looks less than match-sharp? Might Ovie Ejaria be the best option to take the ball in and link with others and what of the usual 4-3-3 system? I don't think we'll know the answer to that conundrum until around 3.30pm tomorrow. Could Gerrard surprise us all? Moving back through the team, there's also the question of matching Aberdeen's physical strength in the middle of the park. Could this mean another 90mins in the rehabilitation of Jordan Rossiter or can Lassana Coulibaly improve his recent poor form? Ryan Jack is surely a certainty to start and he'll be looking to have Graeme Shinnie's head on a pole to annoy his former supporters after the game. We certainly have plenty of options and finding the right midfield blend will not only go a long way to determine tomorrow's outcome but our season as a whole. Scott Arfield returning would be a big creative boost as well. At the back, the manager has said he's still to decide on his goalkeeper and as much as Allan McGregor has been top-class this season, Wes Foderingham has been very good when called upon (especially in our away win at Rugby Park) so we're lucky with our quality there. James Tavernier will surely captain the side again from right back and I'd expect the same back four that started against Spartak given the creative threat of Aberdeen from wider areas and set-pieces. Nevertheless, all things being equal, Rangers fans will be expecting a win tomorrow and despite the loss of Morelos, we have every right to be confident. A score-draw despite wrongly losing the same player to a red card and the loss of a late, late equaliser in our first league game of the season showed we have more quality than Aberdeen. However, Gerrard's 'class above' comments after that game will be used by Derek McInnes to fire up his players so anyone expecting anything other than a hard-fought, physical tight game would be well advised to rethink their analysis. Ultimately, although the Rangers manager did qualify his comments to that one game, it will come down to Gerrard to prove his earlier claims are correct. Win through and all remains rosy in the Rangers garden. Anything else and the pressure will increase. Fortunately, Gerrard demands success and understands Rangers fans are impatient for it. Occasionally our expectations are unrealistic but a win tomorrow is not. We must step up and show our desire for success is authentic. Let's go indeed. Possible starting XI (4-3-3): Foderingham Tavernier | Goldson | Worrall | Flanagan Coulibaly | Jack | Arfield Candeias | Ejaria | Kent
  4. The fixture pile up that participation in Europe has brought is something that bluenoses have relished this season, and whilst the arrival of another international break was not welcomed by the fans there’s little doubt that is was by Gerrard. The international breaks have split the season up very helpfully for Gerrard. A hectic early season schedule brought 13 games before the September break. Our introduction to Gerrard in these games saw an assured Rangers side navigate their way to the European group stages comfortably and start well domestically before running out of steam with points dropped at Fir Park and the first Old Firm derby of the season ending in defeat. The September break could not have come soon enough. As expected and hoped, Rangers emerged from the international break looking rejuvenated. The next group of seven games were crucial and almost went exactly to plan. On the European front, Gerrard’s side stretched their unbeaten run to 10 and re-asserted themselves as serious players on the continent with a draw away at Villarreal and an impressive home win over Rapid Vienna. The five domestic games, however, painted a mixed picture. Four exhilarating home wins averaging four goals scored per game were in risk of being overshadowed by another worrying performance away from home, this time to dark horses Livingston. Incredibly, after a positive opening few months to the season we find ourselves in 6th position in the league, behind the worst Celtic side in decades and amazingly still 7th in the goals conceded table! The Opposition Hamilton away presents Gerrard with the perfect opportunity to smash the unwanted record of having not won away from home in the league and start fresh. After all, the last time a Rangers side left Hamilton empty handed World War 2 was brewing and Bill Struth was the manager. The Accies started the season losing to Annan Athletic and needed penalties to beat Airdrieonians. More recently, they lost at home to fellow strugglers Dundee and St Johnstone before being annihilated in their last outing by in-form Hibs. They have lost 6 out of 8 in the league. It is a strange game to bill as a must-win but to drop points on the road again against a struggling Hamilton side would certainly put pressure on Gerrard. Danger Man Despite how poorly the Access have started, there is little question who Gerrard will be singling out as a threat. Responsible for 55% of Hamilton’s goals this season, 22 year old forward Mickel Miller will be watched very closely by Goldson and co. Miller is fast and isn’t afraid to shoot from distance on his left foot . Rangers News The international break hasn’t been too kind on us this time round. Arfield returns with a hamstring injury which is still to be assessed, and Lafferty will not feature at Hamilton after the IFA invoked the 5 day rule after he pulled out of Northern Ireland Nation League double header due to an apparent Achilles injury. Borna Barisic withdrew from the Croatia squad due to a muscle rupture and Nikola Katic withdrew from the U21 squad due to injury. Predicted Line-Up As Katic, Barisic and Lafferty didn’t start the last couple of games their likely absence will only affect the depth of the squad at Hamilton. Arfield’s injury on the other hand paves the way for the returning Jack. Due to the likely absences, the team seems to pick itself. Worrall will take full advantage of Katic’s recovery time and continue to form a partnership with Goldson at centre back with Tavernier and Flanagan at full back. Jack will join Coulibaly and Ejaria in centre midfield with Kent and Candeias retaining their spots on the wings. Morelos will miss next week’s semi final against Aberdeen and with Lafferty ineligible and he won’t be looking over his shoulder for big Sadiq on this occasion who will be lucky to make the bench. What to Look out For Halliday continues to be popular with the gaffer and Dorrans and Rossiter haven’t even made the bench in the last three games. With Arfield potentially rested, will either finally join Halliday on the bench? Next week’s semi final will be a huge game for the Gers, but we go into it without a recognised striker. Given Rangers have scored at least 4 on our last three trips to Hamilton, will Gerrard be planning to take Morelos off to trial a striker-less system if we manage to get a cushion? Grezda got precious game time with Albanian over the international period with 45 minutes in a friendly before playing the full 90 against Israel. The fans are desperate to see how good he is and will be hoping to see him at his best as soon as possible and this is exactly the kind of game we’d like to see him get an extended time on the pitch, especially if he’s in Gerrard’s plans for the final. Sunday is the perfect chance for Gerrard to put our unwelcome away record behind us and start this next section of the season as we mean to go on, as Championship contenders with a comprehensive away win. The Spartak and Aberdeen coming up, this is a crucial stretch of games and if there’s anything we learnt in October it’s that we can’t take any away domestic game for granted.
  5. Steven Gerrard says he wants Ibrox to be "rocking" when Rangers host Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts on Sunday. The Gers stormed to a 3-1 home win against Rapid Vienna in the Europa League on Thursday, and are hoping to reduce their eight-point deficit on Hearts this weekend. Gerrard is hoping that the Ibrox fans can replicate the European atmosphere for their league encounter, saying: "We'd love Ibrox to be bouncing and rocking again. I'm sure the supporters are going to be going to Ibrox in good spirits after last night. "But we also have to play our part. We can't start slow and wait for the crowd to lift us. Last night the players fed off the atmosphere and it really took them to a really high level. But the players' quality, their tempo and intensity made the fans even more vocal. "It worked perfectly yesterday and as a manager I'd love to see that again on Sunday. Ibrox was rocking, it was shaking, it was bouncing. I've experienced that many, many times at Anfield. The support was almost like a 12th man and it felt like that last night." "We're in good form and I feel we are ready and capable of going through to Glasgow and getting points," he said. "I think it'll be a great game and I'm hopeful we can do enough to come out on top. "We've faced a number of tests so far this season, however, and we've managed to deal with every one we've been presented with. So I'm hopeful that we can do the same again on Sunday. " Team news Ryan Jack is expected to rejoin Steven Gerrard's squad on Sunday. The midfielder has not featured since straining a calf while on Scotland duty last month. Long-term knee injury victim Jamie Murphy remains out while Lee Wallace faces another week or so on the sidelines with a groin injury. Uche Ikpeazu is an injury doubt for Hearts after missing the last few games, and it is touch and go as to his inclusion this weekend. Opta stats Rangers are unbeaten in each of their last five Scottish Premiership matches against Hearts (W4 D1), winning their last three - the last time they went on a longer winning run against Hearts in the competition came between December 2001 and December 2003 (run of nine consecutive victories). Hearts have won just one of their last 22 top-flight visits to Ibrox (D5 L16), a 2-1 victory in March 2012. Hearts manager Craig Levein believes his side can get a result at Ibrox Rangers have won six consecutive home league matches, scoring 18 times whilst conceding only two goals. They haven't won seven on the bounce in the top-flight at Ibrox since April 2010, when the seventh match in that streak was a 2-0 win over Hearts. This is Hearts' best start to a season in the Scottish Premiership (19 points from their opening seven games) since 2005-06, when they won each of their first seven matches. Former Hearts forward and current Rangers player Kyle Lafferty has scored five goals in six Scottish Premiership starts against Hearts at Ibrox for the Gers https://www.skysports.com/football/rangers-vs-hearts/preview/391184
  6. [Full Preview to follow] KO 8pm RFC injury news: Wallace OUT for another few weeks due to groin strain Ryan Jack likely to be IN the squad though Possible team: McGregor Tavernier | Goldson | Katic | Barisic Coulibaly | Ejaria Grezda | Arfield | Kent Morelos Subs: Foderingham Flanagan Jack Dorrans Middleton Candeias Lafferty
  7. Preview by 26th of foot in third post below! I suppose they may as well have a go since though it might get them a real hiding no one expects anything else anyway. Back in February this year we beat them 6-1 on their own ground and it's hard to see this going any other way but something similar to that. We have home advantage this time, we're playing well at home this time and have a far more formidable team this time. https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/45616120
  8. It's Friday morning and I have to admit I'm still basking in the glow of last night's excellent draw in Spain. OK, it might not have been our best ever European performance and we didn't even win the match but the positives are there for all to see. First and foremost, there's character. Some discredited journalists may think our manager is 'quietly terrified' of the Rangers job but I see a man (along with his coaching colleagues) with a huge amount of self-belief and all of whom seem to relish the task. That clearly rubs off on our players who despite two setbacks yesterday kept plugging away to get an unlikely result. Next there's quality. Sure, it's not the best ever Rangers squad and sloppy mistakes are made but even in mid September, the improvement in the team is obvious. We have more depth in the squad, can live with the physical battle and some of our attacking play is a joy to behold when we click. Finally, there's teamwork. The most successful clubs aren't just about one or two individuals but are the sum of all parts. We undoubtedly have a few key players but it's because we're now functioning as a team that we're looking less vulnerable and more dangerous. That's the kind of solid foundation we will need to bring back trophies to Ibrox. Of course we're still far from the finished article and, given our results so far this season, that's paradoxically perhaps a positive. I don't think I've really seen us fully click for 90mins yet and I'm still not sure Gerrard has managed to play his favoured XI or system either. When that happens, we might, just might be capable of challenging properly for the SPFL title. Until then, and with such a busy schedule, we need to keep asking every player to contribute when called upon. The manager was right to point out last night the performance of his subs - all three of whom did the business when they came on. And with another tough match against St Johnstone on Sunday, more fringe players will have the chance to impress this weekend. Given the hot and humid conditions in Villarreal and the effort put in to secure a point, changes to the team are inevitable. I'd expect at least three changes and perhaps as much as five. Joe Worrell had a fine debut but may have to be content with a place on the bench again to allow Katic back into the team. Meanwhile, Borna Barisic went off with what seemed to be a thigh problem so Lee Wallace may well get the chance to start his first game since he went off injured over a year ago at Firhill. I would expect James Tavernier to keep his place at right back - not because Jon Flanagan isn't an able deputy - but because I suspect Eros Grezda may start his first Rangers game on the right flank. As such the influence of Tav behind him may be a good idea. With such an impressive 20mins in Spain, Glenn Middleton may also get the nod ahead of Ryan Kent on the opposite wing. Alfredo Morelos should be a certain starter in attack as he returns from a European suspension. More tricky to predict is the central, deeper players. We're lucky to have several options in there but with injuries to Jack, Ejaria and Rossiter, we're having to rely on players like Arfield, Coulibaly and Halliday. I don't expect that three to play for the third game in a row so Ross McCrorie may add a much needed freshness if Jack or Ejaria don't make it. The return of Graham Dorrans to hopefully full fitness this time will be another great option but he may remain a sub for the time being. All in all, our excellent work in the summer transfer window means we can afford to rotate our squad given the schedule demands of the coming weeks. The big test will be doing that carefully enough as not to disturb momentum and keep delivering results. A draw on Thursday was well received but only three wins domestically over the next week will satisfy Rangers fans before Rapid Vienna visit Ibrox in a fortnight's time. It's a difficult challenge but, so far at least, we appear well up for it. Let's keep riding that wave...! Possible team (4-2-3-1)
  9. While Playing two games a week puts a strain on the players it is absolutely great for the supporters only having to wait three or four days for the chance to watch the famous. The games will be coming quick and fast up until Christmas due to the teams fantastic performances in the Europa league. After climbing the mountains of the qualifying stages as one of the few teams to go through to the group stages from the first qualifying round we now start the first round of the group stages against the Spanish Euro league giants Villareal. While we are not yet back where we want to be as that is in the Champions League the distance we have travelled to get this far is outstanding. Even just thinking about it, only a few years ago we were talking about playing Peterhead and Berwick Rangers and now we are playing Villareal in a Europa league group stage. How good does that sound? Villareal, Rapid Wien and Spartak Moscow and the famous Glasgow Rangers. Get in there! So what do we know about Villareal? They have qualified from the group stages and scored more group stage goals in the Europa league than any other team.They have had a bad start to the season but won on Sunday against Leganes. It was valuable points for Villareal but as Leganes missed a penalty then their win was somewhat fortuitous. They set up in a 4-4-2\4-1-3-2 with attacking full backs and that line-up leaves room for hitting them on the break. The midfield battle will be oh so important. With Steven Gerrard setting his Rangers teams up in a 4-2-3-1 then the Gers will be placed to soak up pressure and hit Villareal on the break. I believe Rangers will start with the 4-3-2-1 setup which with the injuries and bans we have, actually makes it easy to pick the team. We know that Ryan Jack, Ovie Ejaria are injured so that will leave the choice of Andy Halliday and Ross McCrorie for that second defensive midfield role. It has been clear over the last few weeks that Gerrard prefers the experienced Halliday over the teenage McCrorie so it is pretty certain our two holding midfielders will be Lassana Coulibaly and Andy Halliday. I doubt the boss will pick this game to make any changes in defence so with Jon Flanagan suspended, Gareth McAuley injured and Joe Worrall an untried commodity we will start with the tried and trusted defence of Tavernier Goldson Katic and thankfully Borna Barisic. Barisic is now available after being cup-tied for the qualifying rounds after having played for Osijek which included a game against the bears. Alan McGregor since returning to the club has been a rock in the goal. Maybe rock is the wrong word because a rock is a pretty static object and Alan McGregor is anything but static. McGregor pulls of reactionary saves that sometimes are beyond belief. McGregor gives the defence a lot of confidence as they know they can trust him if they play back to him and even if they make a mistake McGregor has the ability to pull them out the fire. Confidence in your keeper makes a huge difference to the confidence of defenders. Gerrard Has already said that Kyle lafferty will lead the line as Alfredo Morelos is suspended for the game due to his red card against UFA. One thing is certain tonight, the players have to have the discipline to keep eleven players on the field. We are now in with the big boys and won't get away with playing with men short. That only leaves an attacking midfield three. Eros Grezda was introduced against Dundee on Saturday but after missing most of the season until now through injury he is far from being match fit for a game as big as villareal and I doubt he will even show. Ovie Ejaria is injured so unless Gerrard throws a curve ball the midfield three will be Daniel Candeias, Scott Arfield and Ryan Kent. The work rate of Kent and Candeias in attacking and defending is second to none. Kent and Barisic on the left is still a work in progress but the partnership of Candeias and Tavernier has become a pretty well oiled machine. Glenn Middleton will show at sometime but I doubt we will be starting with the 18 year old. This is a great opportunity to see just how far we have really come. I think the team will be: McGregor Tavernier Goldson Katic Barisic Halliday Coulibaly Candeias Arfield Kent Lafferty So only one more thing to say. C'Mon the Gers get in tae them!!!
  10. Introduction After a whirlwind set of opening fixtures which began on the 12th of July against little known Shkupi and ended in disappointment against somewhat more familiar opposition on the 2nd of September, Gerrard and his team have finally had a chance to take a breather, regroup and prepare for this next set of crucial fixtures ahead of the October international break. This group of fixtures will include a much-coveted return to the glamour of Europe with Ibrox set to welcome visitors from Spain and Austria in the shape of Villarreal and Rapid Vienna. However, before then we host more humble opposition managed by a former Gers star with an attack spearheaded by a former Gers star. The Opposition Neil McCann brings his side to Ibrox under immense pressure and with a point to prove. The Dees have endured a horrendous run of five straight losses - including a humbling on their own patch in the cup at the hands of Championship side Ayr United – which sees them languishing at the bottom of the table without a point. A series of listless performances has caused many of their fans to question the instability brought about by the high turnover of players at the club which has seen last season’s mainstays Bain, Hendry, Caulker, Holt, O’Hara, Allan, El Bakhtaoui and Murray all depart the club. Free transfer arrivals from the likes of Woking and Kidderminster Harriers rather than re-investing the Hendry fee signals a club in decline. Having said that, a wounded animal can be a dangerous one and there is some quality in McCann’s side. A certain Kenny Miller seems to age like a fine malt whisky and will be ready to pounce in the box given half a chance. On-loan youngster Kallman is another one to watch after breaking his duck in the 3-1 defeat to Motherwell. Calvin Miller, on loan from Celtic, provides a threat from left back with the ability to get forward and get crosses into the box. However, the most interesting thing to see when the line-ups are announced will be whether Glen Kamara passes a late fitness test. Kamara was linked to Rangers over the summer and some in the summer transfer rumours thread were keen to see him signed. If he returns, there is no doubt he will make Dundee more competitive in the middle of the park. Rangers A passive performance against Celtic gave much cause for concern and raised a number of questions. Some sections of the media were quick to use phrases like “reality check” and many of our own fans were not sure themselves if that is what it was or how great a role the many mitigating factors were playing. What is sure is that the fans are desperate to see a well-rested, well drilled and rejuvenated team put on a show on Saturday and show that it’s back to business as usual. Morale has improved over the international break with Barisic playing the full game against Portugal and Morelos grabbing what we will graciously call an assist in his Colombia debut, followed by high praise from his idol Radamel Falcao. The sight of quartet Coulibaly, Grezda, Dorrans and Rossiter in training was a further boost but the fans will be anxious to see whether Coulibaly in particular returns to the starting line-up. The clash with bottom of the table Dundee at home is the first fixture of its kind since St Mirren, a home game in which we are expected to go all-out attack and win comfortably. Gerrard will want to see a return to the high pressing, high intensity aggressive display which so impressed the fans against Maribor and in the opening half hour against St Mirren and hopefully that’s what we’ll get. Line-up The signing of the highly rated Worrall on loan from Nottingham Forest followed by the capture of Northern Ireland international Gareth McAuley has given many reason to believe that Gerrard plans to utilise 3-5-2 on a more regular basis going forward. Wingers Candeias, Kent and Grezda would be the losers in this formation with Lafferty and Worrall being the primary benefactors. However I’m going to predict a familiar looking 4-2-3-1/4-3-3 with Lafferty paving the way for Candeias and Coulibaly making a return in the place of Ovie Ejaria.
  11. We've seen and heard a lot since Steven Gerrard became the Rangers manager pretty much exactly three months ago. As much as the sheer profile of Gerrard the player excited even the most negative of Rangers fans, there were understandable doubts and scepticism. This was a untried manager with only 18 months as a youth coach on his CV. Sure, Gerrard had incredible success as a player but there were (still are?) no guarantees about his managerial prospects. Rangers, running off the back of financial and legal issues for the best part of ten years, and challenging the modern 'invincibles' of Celtic - seven league titles in a row, including an unbeaten sixth title and a double treble - was surely no place for a young manager making his way in the game to learn his trade. After all, this challenge almost broke Graeme Murty, another young man with only a background in youth coaching. Yes, their playing careers were very different but the risk for the Rangers board and their Director of Football Mark Allen, was surely needless? Many neutrals said as much and, if we're honest, really honest with ourselves, we all had the same concerns. Very quickly though, this just seemed different. Gerrard's unveiling in May was the first chance we got to hear the man explain his reasons for taking the job and right away the Rangers supporters took confidence from the way he dealt with the media. This wasn't a man to shirk a challenge. This was an icon, a British footballing legend, who understood the scale of the job and appreciated how difficult it was going to be. 'Let's Go' was an unplanned soundbite but it fit the background well, kept things very simple and inspired fans. Since then progress has been swift. Dozens of transfers in and out of the club. Training camps in Spain with double and triple sessions to improve fitness, tactical awareness and build relationships. Twelve competitive games (nine in August alone) - six wins, six draws and, impressively, zero defeats. In fact, take away some questionable refereeing at home and abroad (and some questionable discipline from one or two players) then that record could and should have been better. Indeed, only two injury time goals away at Aberdeen and Motherwell have stopped Rangers from having the perfect league record to compliment their qualification for the Europa League Group Stage. It's literally been a case of blink and you'll miss it when watching Rangers so far this season. At the time of writing on Friday evening, Gerrard has signed 14 players and moved on 16 first team players. The turnover has been astonishing and, so far, the results impressive with a new defence the pick of the new manager's work. Rangers supporters are delighted and despite some understandable imperfections as Gerrard builds a new squad and system, confidence is building like no other period in the last six or seven years. However, with a two week international break on the immediate horizon, I think fans are looking to take a breath. And the players, especially our central defenders and main striker, certainly deserve the rest. Last weekend at Fir Park, the second half in a quite incredible game took a lot out the team and having to play 30mins with nine men nine hours away in Ufa on Thursday is again asking an immense amount out of this new squad. Yet, we have one more hurdle still to face. One more jump to make. Another tough test to pass - the toughest yet. On Sunday, the team will make the short journey across the Clyde to Parkhead to face our greatest rivals in what is still one of football's greatest games. However, the atmosphere will be markedly different from recent years. First of all, relations between the clubs are as bad as they've ever been so there will be very few bears present - only 800 in fact, most in restricted viewing positions well out of sight of the Sky TV cameras. Secondly, Celtic seem to be suffering themselves with dressing room problems: key players falling out with managers and one goal-scoring talisman being sold. The dynamic seems to be one of promises not being fulfilled, broken trust, suspicious fans and banner protests. Finally, and most importantly, we have a team that can compete. Not just physically but, as we've seen several times this season already, mentally too. Self-belief is a vital component of any successful team - Celtic show that continually against us whilst we've faltered time and time again since our return to the top flight. Make no mistake, our form has shown we can get a result on Sunday. Even so, one of our bigger failings in our various Old Firm humblings of the last two years has been our predictability. A blind man could usually pick our team, guess our system and know where to hurt us. We only needed to concede a goal to fall apart and rarely looked like scoring ourselves. For the most part, we were beaten before the whistle was even blown. This weekend that need not be the case. Sure, Gerrard has preferred a 4-3-3/4-2-3-1 most often this season but last week deployed a 3-5-2 that, despite three defensive mistakes not immediately linked to the formation, worked not too badly (in the first half at least). It (or perhaps a 3-4-3) will be used again during this campaign with the loan capture of Joe Worrall from Nottingham Forest increasing our defensive options as well. Moreover, Gerrard hasn't been afraid to rotate his team - in particular his midfield five - so there's no obvious starting XI for Sunday (though I do try to predict this below)! The biggest issue for the Rangers manager will be that of the schedule discussed above. Despite obvious improvements in fitness, players will be tired (at least later in the game) and player indiscipline/officials incompetence won't have helped on Thursday evening. A nine hour overnight flight, just two full days of recovery and only light training drills isn't ideal preparation for any game, never mind away to Celtic, but they played on Thursday too and may not have their usual spring in their step - even if they could afford the luxury of resting key players. Fortunately, we can make changes too. Depending on the system used we can bring in a few players and, ironically, Morelos' daft red card afforded him an extra hour's rest on Thursday. Although I wouldn't rule out a back three, I do expect us to play a four on Sunday as it would be a big risk to bring in Worrall for his debut. McGregor will of course start in goal and Borna Barisic likely the only change to our usual defensive line up. Worrall, Jon Flanagan and erstwhile captain Lee Wallace do offer other options though. In midfield, Lassana Coulibaly has returned to training but may have to settle for a place on the bench though his return might well have been kept as a nice surprise for this game. The likes of Jack, Ejaria, Arfield and Halliday have done lots of good work of late and a combination of those four will surely start. Ross McCrorie may be a wild card should the manager wish for fresh legs and mobility in the engine room. That leaves us three players in attacking roles. Daniel Candeias has never really got going this season but might be preferred to aid James Tavernier on the right side and press high centrally. Ryan Kent has done well on the other flank but with Morelos apparently forgiven for his Ufa immaturity and likely to start, I do wonder if Kyle Lafferty will play on the left. Albanian winger Eros Grezda will hopefully turn out to be a big player for Rangers this season but I don't think we'll see him until after the international break. Glenn Middleton is another option and I do wonder if his pace and direct play could add some doubt to any Celtic defenders? Ultimately, this game will arguably come too early for a few players so I think the manager will opt for familiarity at the expense of freshness. In that respect, we're asking a lot of the potential line-up below but the belief obtained from Thursday's draw and the adrenaline from an Old Firm clash should at least see us through the bulk of the game. After that we're reliant on making the right subs at the right time to deliver the kind of positive result we've lacked against Celtic of late. Another top class defensive display will be needed and our attackers, particularly Alfredo Morelos, must make the most of any chances that come their way. In conclusion, coming away from the East End of Glasgow unbeaten on Sunday would cap off a fantastic first three months in charge for Steven Gerrard. However, god forbid if his team were to return to Ibrox empty-handed, it wouldn't be the end of the world either - not when the full context is applied - so in essence we have nothing to lose with the vast majority of another long season still to be played out. No matter the outcome, the league won't be won nor lost in early September but we do have a chance to lay down an early marker and show we are indeed the real deal. For the first time in a fairly long time ahead of going to Parkhead, I cannot wait... Possible team (4-3-3):
  12. UFA v Rangers One of the biggest talking points of the last while is whether the Russians fixed the American elections or not. Did Putin play his Trump card you could ask? Well if they can put that kind of influence into the American presidential election then getting to a Polish referee would not be too big a problem for them. Now I am not going to say the Polish referee had been paid by the Russians but his leniency to UFA's constant fouling and his blindness at two stonewall penalties definitely casts a shadow of doubt at his standard of refereeing. Lets hope his poor refereeing has no negative influence in the outcome of the tie. Tomorrow we play the return leg in the far outback of Ufa in Russia. We will have to tend with the time difference of four hours so the game will be played at 3pm GMT so most people will have to take a few hours off work if they want to watch it. We take a 1-0 lead with us after the first leg at Ibrox which means if we can get a goal the Russians will need to score three to advance to the next stage. Judging on their performance at Ibrox then it would seem unlikely they can do that. Complacency is of course the kiss of death as we found out last season in Luxembourg. It certainly made us play well below our capabilities against Progres Niederkorn. Stevie Gerrard will have to get that drilled into the team. Our second-half performance against Motherwell on Sunday was certainly not a performance that would breed complacency right enough. It was a very flat performance to say the very least. We have not seen anything as poor as that from this Steven Gerrard team until now so lets hope it was just a little blip. One of the positives from the Motherwell game was the instant Man of the Match display by big Kyle Lafferty. He certainly looks a completely different player to the one that walked away in 2012. When we were actually playing football in the first half he was a huge thorn in the Motherwell defence. He did make his return debut in the first leg where he was on for about a minute before receiving a yellow card. If the referee was so quick to produce a yellow to the UFA players then we may have got a game without the constant fouling. What can we expect from this UFA team? I really don't think they will start much different than they did at Ibrox. I think they will try and keep it tight and try and get the goal on the break to level the tie . I think trying not to lose a goal will play more on their minds than opening up and playing more attacking. I think they will hope we walk on to their sword so to speak. I do think Rangers will come out and try to dominate the game. We all saw on Sunday that sitting defending our own eighteen yard box is not our strong point and we have shown that on a few occasions this season. The big question is how will steven Gerrard set up the team. Will he go for the 3-5-2 that we played on Sunday or will he revert back to his tried and trusted 4-5-1. Personally I think the latter as he will be trying to keep the defence as tight as possible. I think the starting team will be if Coulibaly is not deemed fit enough : McGregor Tavernier Goldson Kadic Flanagan Jack Ejaria Candeias Arfield kent Morelos I certainly hope that with the return of Candeias that Tavernier is more alert in doing his defensive duties as he cost us two goals on Saturday. Big Kyle will appear at some point but that will depend on the score if we need to go for two up top or give Morelos a rest for Saturday I think we will run out 2-1 winners. The referee is: Tobias Stieler (GER) Lets hope the Russians have don't have him running for president. Assistant referees Mike Pickel (GER) Christian Gittelmann (GER) Fourth official Patrick Ittrich (GER)
  13. Here we are in the Europa League Play-off round with the majority of our support convinced that the tie against FC Ufa is pretty much a formality.....Who'd have thought it ? Not me, I saw the EL group stages 2018/19 as unrealistic, but an excellent, solid start from the new management team together with good recruitment and a slice of luck in the draw see us 180 minutes from making the groups and all that follows from that. FC Ufa stand in our way and the general vibe of optimism amongst us is well founded given our performances to date but given we don't know much about them, has to be toned down a tadge if we don't want to get complacement (can't imagine SG allowing the players to get complacent). According to the Gersnet prediction league, a 2-0 win with the first goal coming from Morelos is a cert and bookies may go out of business on Friday !! I'm not going to go into heavy research mode to compile a dossier on the Russians but here is some info posted earlier in the week by someone who does know a little about the club. http://russianfootballnews.com/who-are-rangers-europa-league-opponents-fc-ufa/ What I will point out is that if you go by the co-efficient table, Russia sit in 6th place. That is to say that outwith the 5 Big Leagues, they come next, comfortably ahead of the likes of Portugal. This tends to suggest the level of the top half of the Russian top division is very decent and we have to take into account and respect that Ufa finished 6th last season. They ain't no minnows. Its curious, but the team that we beat to win the Cup Winners Cup in 1972 skelped FC Ufa 3-0 on Monday (Ufa were resting several players) and the team that beat us in the UEFA Cup Final in 2008 are the team Ufa will play sandwiched between their matches with us. Also curious is that the only three times Russian teams* who have managed to make a European Final, two of them have seen Rangers in opposition, Dynamo Moscow ('72) and Zenit ('08). * I don't include teams that are now Ukranian, ie. Kiev and Tiblisi Another thing about what is a 4th qualifier,....Only five times in our history have we successfully negotiated 4 stages of European competition on the spin and three of those were when we made the Final. I appreciate that that is a somewhat unfair comparison given how qualifiers heavily feature now but all the same, it would be only the 6th time IF we get past FC Ufa. There can't be many teams playing in European competition that can say they have never lost, perhaps FC Ufa are the only one who can. The context being that this is their first season in European competition and to date they have 1 win, 3 draws and 2 successfully negotiated ties, both being settled with late goals, away from home. Thu 26/07/18 UEL Ufa 0 - 0 Domžale More info Thu 02/08/18 UEL Domžale 1 - 1 Ufa View events More info Thu 09/08/18 UEL Ufa 2 - 1 Progrès Niederkorn View events More info Thu 16/08/18 UEL Progrès Niederkorn 2 - 2 Ufa 'Sources' say that their strength is in defence, keeping things tight and counter-attacking. We'll only know to what level after the game on Thursday. The atmosphere at Ibrox should be fantastic and should give us impetus to put them under pressure early doors. It goes without saying that an early goal for us would be welcome and help set-up the night. I'd imagine that McGregor and Flanagan will come back into the side and hope that Goldson and Katic are fit. Jack will probably be back in with Arfield and Ejaria. Candeias and Kent supplying some width and Morelos in and around the penalty box. Candeias and Ejaria are one booking away from a suspension. All things considered this is a huge game and it'll take another excellent performance to get the result we want. I think we'll get the win but we could do with the uniform gersnet prediction coming in, at least two goals of advantage and for them not to get an away goal.
  14. Would be good to get a proper match preview up over the next day or two so please remember everyone is welcome to submit one - for use on the main site or not. In the meantime, here's a possible team for Sunday's trip to Fir Park. I know the manager is keen to rotate his squad where possible but I do wonder if he'd like to try and get some attacking consistency into his team selection. In saying that it wouldn't surprise me if we see the likes of Lafferty and Middleton start in attacking roles whilst Andy Halliday might fancy his chances of making the team too with Ross McCrorie unavailable due to suspension. The quicker we can get Coulibaly and Rossiter fit the better as well with the former doing some light training today.
  15. Rangers: Foderingham; Tavernier, Goldson, Katic, Barisic; Halliday, Ejaria, Arfield; Kent, Murphy, MorelosSubs: Alnwick, Flannigan, McCrorie, Jack, Candeias, Middleton, Sadiq https://rangers.co.uk/news/headlines/three-changes-for-cup-clash/
  16. The games continue to come thick and fast for Steven Gerrard and his Rangers players with their eighth competitive game in little over a month. However, given they remain unbeaten, who's counting?! The positives of this busy schedule are pretty obvious: firstly with only a few friendly matches played, the earlier Europa League qualifying rounds were effectively our pre-season. Next these games not only allowed our vastly changed squad to get fit but to get to know each other and the management team's expectations. Finally, given our unbeaten record - despite two red cards in our first two league matches - it has seen confidence and morale build amongst the players and the supporters. Already the team and football looks a lot better than in recent years and that's vital if we're to challenge Celtic once more. Unfortunately, there are also concerns. Because of the bad officiating and our own questionable discipline, we've only had 11 men on the pitch for 40mins of our first two league games. Add in the fact this is our third two-legged European game, then already it's obvious there's a demand on player fitness. As it stands the players have coped well with this but it won't be long before injuries and knocks start to niggle so Gerrard has understandably looked to rotate his squad. With players also unavailable tonight due to suspension (Flanagan has picked up three bookings) and rules (Barasic can't feature until the group stages) that means care has to be taken in team selection. Indeed, the question of who plays tonight at left back is arguably one of the most important decisions Gerrard has yet to make. As expected, does he bring in Andy Halliday who struggled last season (but has done fine so far this term in short cameo roles) or does he shuffle his pack and opt for three at the back with one of Murphy, Kent or Middleton playing deeper than usual? Given Maribor haven't been short of goals this season - especially at home - then this will be a key tactical choice this evening. Moreso when we consider the Slovenians will be keen to score early to bring themselves back into the tie. Interestingly, the manager suggested in his pre-match presser that, despite this, he won't be looking to sit deep and protect our lead. Instead he wants us to stay on the front foot and look to gain territory ourselves; perhaps enough to continue to create the kind of chances we seen in the first leg and score the away goal which would surely put the tie beyond the reach of Maribor. Of course that's easier said than done in practice. However, Gerrard and the Rangers fans will have been encouraged with the way they've played away in Osijek and Shkupi already in the competition. In these games, whilst we didn't sit deep per se, we didn't commit men forward either; instead looking to maintain possession, control the game and keep things tight at the back. An early Rangers goal in Croatia helped and the same in Slovenia would do wonders again tonight. In terms of the team, it's not just left back that raises questions. OK, other than that position the defence of McGregor, Tavernier, Goldson and Katic is pretty much a certainty though McCrorie may help form a back three should that system be considered. In front of a more probable four though, Ryan Jack is expected to return from injury to continue his fine summer form. Despite picking up a knock on Sunday, Lassana Coulibaly should partner him centrally with Scott Arfield perhaps favoured in a slightly more offensive position. Ross McCrorie may again be the odd man out here but will definitely play at some point. Moving into the wider areas, Gerrard is spoilt for choice with Kent, Murphy, Candeias, Middleton and Ejaria all capable of featuring right across the attacking lines. In truth, any two of the five could be used effectively but I'd expect the experience of Murphy and Candeias to start the game. Meanwhile, the lone striker role will again be taken up by Alfredo Morelos. It's no surprise French side Bordeaux are the latest to signal an interest in signing the Columbian given his excellent contribution so far this season but suffice to say he won't be going anywhere for the figures reported in today's media. That leaves us with the XI in the graphic below in what has been our favoured 4-2-3-1 formation this season. However, this side is far from guaranteed and that personnel and tactical fluidity is another positive in a summer that has Rangers fans smiling so far. Another performance of quality, grit and belief will be required to keep that grin on our faces tonight. This tie is far from done and there's also a long way to go domestically. Nevertheless the future is bright and I can't wait to see this Rangers squad and manager leap the latest hurdle in front of them. Possible team (4-2-3-1):
  17. I am sure we all know the syndrome of the quick fix. You know something is not working right but you go for the cheap fix. Like your vacuum cleaner hose is ripped and you put tape around it to keep it going for another few months. I had the same thing for the last two years with my car. My rear door gas dampers were not working properly. I think I have sprayed a fortune on oil or silicone spray on them to try and get them to work lighter. It even got so bad recently that instead of retracting and extending they were jumping off the ball joint. Again the silicone spray came out. Works great for a few days and then it is back to the same slog of pushing the rear door up like a body builder lifting weights. Then a few weeks ago I had pushed the door up. The gas damper sprung off the ball joint and the rear door came crashing down onto my head. Only then did I decide it was time to replace the old dampers. On to Ebay and for twenty euros I ordered two new dampers and fitted them on within five minutes. Now I only have to open the door about three inches and the door opens itself up to the full open position. Now I am mad that I tortured myself for two years going for what I thought was the cheap mend. That is the feeling I get when I think back on the last few years with Rangers. We have been fire fighting bringing in older worn down players like Alves and Graham Dorrans for very little pay back.. This wasn't even the cheapest options but certainly the wrong options. With Pedro Caixinha bringing in these players it was a bit like replacing the rear door of my car but keeping the old gas dampers. We obviously ordered the wrong parts and tried to make them fit. In signing Bruno Alves and Dorrans was a bit like going to the scrapyard and paying a fortune for old parts while the new younger parts came at probably a quarter of the price in wages. I am not going to say that Connor Goldson or Nikola Katic will ever hit the heights in their careers as Bruno Alves has but just like my gas dampers there comes a time when even top quality parts have to be replaced. Past success is no guarantee of future success springs to mind, Hopefully that is also the cry when Rangers take on Maribor in the on coming week. Our last encounter with the Slovenians ended in tears for the Gers. Players such as Allan McGregor, Nikica Jelavic, Maurice Edu, Kyle Lafferty, Carlos Bocanegra and Steven Davis failed to get past them. They have also spent years in the Champions league so in no way is this going to be an easy game. Steven Gerrard has taken Rangers to a new level but will it be high enough to trouble the Slovenians? Back then we played the first leg away from home getting a valuable away goal in a 2-1 defeat. Unfortunately while we were pushing for a goal in the second leg at Ibrox Maribor managed to break on the 55th minute and take the lead meaning we had to score twice to win. Twenty minutes later Carlos Bocanegra levelled the scoring giving the Gers time to snatch the winner but it was all to no avail. Despite Rangers peppering the goal and Kyle Lafferty having a header cleared off the line, Maribor held out to go through on a 3-2 aggregate. Roll on seven years and again we have to face up to the Slovenians. Rangers have put out extremely difficult opponents in in the first two qualifying rounds FC Schkupi of Macedonia and the East Croatian NK Osijek. The reward for beating the Slovenians will be a place in the play-off stages of the Europa league and the riches that go with that. Rangers seem to have completely changed strategy this season. In Steven Gerrard we have brought in a top quality young hungry manager and we are picking up younger players whose sell by date is far in the future. He has gone for young legs with skill, strength and speed. Gone are the days when Rangers can be bullied in the middle of the park. Even with ten men for most of the game against Aberdeen on Sunday we ruled the game. Unfortunately we lost a goal in the 94th minute to give Aberdeen a draw that they celebrated as if they had won the European cup but Rangers must look at the positive of being a far better team than Aberdeen and also a far stronger team than the Rangers team of last season. Maribor reached the play-off stages of the Champions league last season where they gained three points with draws against Seville Spartak Moscow and Liverpool. They drew with Seville at home and Spartak in both the home and away games, but took a 7-0 hammering from Liverpool so hopefully Steven Gerrard will know a lot about them and their weak points. On the home front they had a trophy-less season losing a play-off to their biggest rivals Olimpija in a head to head play-off after finishing equal on points. They will certainly be no push-overs but the prize of the group section of the Europa league must be a huge carrot to the Rangers players. Hopefully we can cut out the common denominator of the last two games in losing late goals and get back to giving Alan McGregor a clean sheet that is so important in Europe. Hopefully the players and supporters will make Ibrox the old Fortress it used to be and we can gain a lead to head to Maribor with. I think the team will be If Jack is still injured: McGregor Tavernier Goldson Katic Flanagin Coulibaly Murphy Candeias Arfield Kent Morelos C'mon the Gers.
  18. After the conclusion of World War Two, Scottish football reconvened for season 1946/47. In the intervening seventy-two seasons, we have only faced Aberdeen in a League Championship opener on two occasions. This Sunday's match will be the third, all three have been/are Pittodrie fixtures. Thus, league beginnings with the Dandies are the proverbial hen's teeth. Looking at the previous collectors' items might show a way ahead for two days hence? Season '77/78 was a tumultuous roller coaster ride for Bears. The previous season had seen Rangers set up to defend their Treble, but failed abjectly. The close season was seemingly uneventful, the Coop had arrived for £100,000 from Clydebank and we sold Ian McDougall to Dundee for £15,000. Oh, and we paid Shettleston Juniors £2,000 for the mercurial Bobby Russell. I traveled on the Tannochside RSC bus to FurryBoots City on the morning of the 13th of August, and collective optimism was low. The midfield needed new legs and a Junior player was not the answer. Inside the Paddock, the gloom deepened as the Rangers team was announced; McCloy, Jardine, Forsyth, Jackson, Miller, Russell MacDonald, MacKay, Parlane, Robertson, and Cooper. The Junior, a teenage winger, Billy MacKay, and the diminutive forward Chris Robertson(older brother of Hearts, John) all starting at Pittodrie failed to inspire confidence. The game began with the Don's Drew Jarvie scoring in the second minute and we had to survive a few more near things before Cooper and Russell revealed a near telepathic relationship. We played our way into the game and deservedly drew level on the half hour, Russell finishing a lovely move. Heightened spirits at half time soon dissipated when Jarvie and Joe Harper struck twice inside a minute on the hour. Boos rang around the away support as the most promising teenager, MacKay was substituted by Bobby McKean. In the wake of an opening day 3-1 defeat, the journey home on the bus was most fractious. An assurance from the Bus Convener that Gordon Smith was signing for the club on Monday and £400,000(Parlane plus £200,000) had been offered to Leeds United for their young Scots centre half, Gordon McQueen was not deemed helpful, Smith was a fan dancer! We regained the Treble at the culmination of the season. Russell, Cooper, and Gordon Smith played significant parts. DJ notched forty goals and John Greig became the first player since Davie Meiklejohn, over half a century before, to be awarded a Testimonial. Colin Stein was released on a Free. Tragically, Bobby McKean was found dead inside his car, and our manager, Jock Wallace resigned after securing two Trebles in three seasons. John Greig was appointed manager of Rangers the very next day. We must spring forward thirty-four years to the 28th July'01 for our second Hill'o'Dung opener. Circumstances were vaguely similar, a chastened Dick Advocaat led Rangers to the reflecting light of the grey granite. MON had put his gas at a peep, and the city of energy was not keen on reigniting his enthusiasm. It was reported that Rangers players and staff had been out their beds twice due to bogus fire alarms, the usual suspects sniggered at their discomfort, promising it would only get worse. They had not graduated to etching Ibrox Disaster slurs on the team bus, that would come later. Pittodrie was a sun drenched toilet that day, Rangers lined up as follows : Klos, Ricksen, Moore, Vidmar, Numan, Reyna, Latapy, Konterman, Nerlinger, Caniggia, and Mols. Interestingly, Rangers had just returned from Slovenia, where they had defeated Maribor three zip, and the midweek exertions were clearly visible in an uninspiring goalless first half. Rangers increased the pace after the restart and the Dons Struggled, three goals in twenty minutes turned the sheep to mutton. Nerlinger clipped a twenty yarder into the net, Latapy dispatched a penalty, and Caniggia followed in on a spilled Miller shot. A successive three nil away win should have inspired confidence to kick-on, but we drew nil nil with newly promoted Livi' at Ibrox the following Saturday. By mid-season, we had lost sight of ra Sellik and were fighting off a rejuvenated Hibs under McLeish. We had progressed in the UEFA Cup, but lost out to Feyenoord by the odd goal in seven at the quarter-final stage. Dick resigned, became Director of Football, appointed Eck and we went on to win both the League Cup and Scottish Cup finals against ra Sellik. Who can forget Lovenkrand's last minute header, or the sharp crack of 25,000 seats snapping back as the green'n'grey hordes rushed to depart a truly joyous national stadium? Sunday's early kick-off will be a trial for both teams. Recovery from Thursday evening's trials and tribulations will demand fresher legs. I suspect the first half will be a territorial battle and thus hope McCrorie starts beside Jack. Either Arfield or Coulibaly for the third midfield berth. Further, Murphy's fresher legs on the flank. I would go with : McGregor, Tavernier, Goldson, Katic, Flanagan, Jack, McCrorie, Coulibaly, Candeias, Morelos, and Murphy. After an hour, when football breaks out, Kent, Middleton, Ejeria, etc will have a part to play. I hope for a two nil victory? Whether this fixture is as seminal in the coming season as the previous two proved to be, is any ones' guess. Would we sacrifice the result for an improving performance, leading to silverware later in the season? The only remaining question is who will BBC Scotland target for further attention from the Compliant Officer? Big Dick Gordon hates McGregor, despises Morelos, and fulminates at the mention of Ryan Jack. Deciding vote becomes the responsibility of Liam McLeod, Wullie Miller, Billy Dodds, Chris McLaughlin, and Jonathon Sutherland. Does an unanimous decision await?
  19. With only a few days left until the start of the new Scottish league season, Rangers fans are in reasonably fine fettle ahead of both the away opener in Aberdeen and, firstly, tonight's home Europa League second leg qualifier against Osijek. Yes, the performances so far - in the competitive games at least - may not have raised many eyebrows but the results, at least, have been good. Add in impressive friendly wins at home to Bury and Wigan with no goals yet conceded across all five games so far then not only have Rangers demonstrated a defensive improvement but they have shown an ability to get forward at pace to create chances and score goals. In that sense, Steven Gerrard may be caught in two minds somewhat ahead of this evening's game. Does he, as in Macedonia, instruct his team to keep it tight, sit deep, control the game and try to create on the counter? Or, should he look to build on the advantage gained in Croatia and expose any weaknesses in what is a reasonable Osijek outfit? The sell-out crowd attending the game may favour the latter but, initially at least, Gerrard hasn't been afraid to show his pragmatic side so I wouldn't expect any attacking fireworks from the off tonight. It's in that defensive vein, Gerrard has sought to his improve his squad with the bulk of any transfer cash spent on the £5million central defence partnership of Connor Goldson and Nikola Katic. Add in the experience of Allan McGregor and the physical reputation of Jon Flanagan then we should no longer have a defence that leaks cheap goals. Some set-piece lapses aside, that has been evident from our games so far but Osijek certainly carry more of an attacking threat than any of the other teams we've faced over the summer. With that in mind, I expect one or two changes from the team that snatched that important away win last Thursday. Firstly, with Scott Arfield fit again, I think it's likely he'll replace Ovie Ejaria in central midfield. The on-loan Liverpool youngster has performed quite well so far but Arfield's experience and more rounded game will be necessary this evening. It wouldn't surprise me to see last season's player of the year Daniel Candeias come back into the side as well instead of Ryan Kent. Again, the on-loan Liverpool player did OK last week but, despite a poor start to this season in the Shkupi games, Candeias' relationship with Tavernier is one that shouldn't be broken up so easily - especially given the threat Osijek carry in wide areas. Candeias played well against Wigan and his creative influence can't be under-estimated. That leaves the tough-tackling Lassana Coulibaly and Ryan Jack to sit that bit deeper and with both midfielders doing well so far this season, that gives the Rangers manager the kind of platform he'll need to not only lock opposition sides out but dominate other midfields to secure possession and create chances. In that sense, I'd expect Jamie Murphy and Alfredo Morelos to be our main attacking threats and both will be keen to continue their goal-scoring form in Europe so far - even if both their performances have been rather inconsistent. The good news for Rangers fans is that we now have strength in depth should changes need to be made. Players like Kent, Ejaria and Glenn Middleton will disappointed not to make the possible starting XI below but will be needed throughout this season. The same will be said for players such as Ross McCrorie, Umar Sadiq and Greg Docherty. The enigma that is Josh Windass hasn't yet impressed this season but, if he does stay at the club, then there's no doubt his creative input will be important as well and he may well start tonight! Indeed, with the manager keen to add at least two further players to his squad - these being another central defender and striker - and with injured players such as Rossiter, John, Dorrans and Wallace still to feature this season, there's no doubt our squad appears bigger and better than last season's. Ultimately though, that will only be decided on the pitch and with good results. It's early days but it's been a case of so far, so good in our pre-season preparations and it's vital we build on that with European progression tonight and a positive league start as well, not just against Aberdeen on Sunday but right through August and September. Not only will that deliver confidence and self-belief to the players and fans but it will lay down a marker to other clubs in Scotland. For too long now we've been too passive, too negative and too easy to beat on and off the field. It's time that changed and there's no time like the present. Possible team (4-2-3-1]:
  20. Rangers produced a competent hard working display against Osijek from Croatia in the Europa league on Thursday while also getting what could be a valuable away goal,in a 0-1 win. Steven Gerrard made three changes from the game against Schkupi bringing in Ovie Ejaria, Lassana Coulibaly and the new player just literally hours in the door Ryan Kent. Oh how I would love to say Clark Kent but comparing him to Superman may just be a little bit over the top at this stage. He certainly put in a really good hard working shift. Lassana Coulibaly had a slightly sluggish start to the game but soon got up to speed and along with Ryan Jack controlled the central midfield area. At the end up he won a crunching (legal) tackle that I am sure the Croatian player will remember for a time to come. Others certainly worth a mention are Alan McGregor who is showing us why Wes Foderingham needed to be replaced. He commands his area and talks and instructs the players giving the defenders a confidence that was missing from Foderingham's game. We also seem to have won a watch with the signing of Conner Goldson who's positional play has been excellent in the three clean sheet competitive games we have played until now. Nikola Katic also seems to have slotted in nicely next to him and as all Croatians looks very comfortable on the ball. It was his long pass to Ryan Kent that helped set up the corner that resulted in the Rangers goal . I also have to mention the Man of the Match for me, Alfredo Morelos. Not only did he score the only goal but his link up play was also of really high quality. Hopefully this is the beginning of a return to the form that we all know he has in his locker. Just a word of warning. This tie is far from over and Osijek have a very good record of winning away from home as PSV Eindhoven found out last season.We have to believe we can put the tie to bed though and play with the confidence that seems to be growing in the players and throughout the club. On Sunday we have a friendly arranged with Wigan Athletic which will be the last friendly for them and us before the season starts for real. The first thing is that it is great to have a game where we can pronounce the name of the team without breaking our tongues. What can we expect from Rangers? In the last friendly the players were split into two teams who played forty-five minutes each. I would imagine that Gerrard will protect the players who have been, and will be playing in the Europa league. I think he may start with the team that played on Thursday to let the new boys gel in but I doubt they will get more than forty-five minutes and some may be rested completely. I think McGregor will make way for Jack Alnwick who will get the full game to sharpen him up. Picking a team for a friendly is like trying to pick the grand national winner. As a non betting man I will thus renegue from trying. I do expect this game to be used to bring back Dorrans and introduce Umar Zadiq who I hear has not totally impressed in training, resulting in him being left behind for the trip to Croatia. Gerrard brought on Glenn Middleton for Morelos on Thursday to play the strikers role. Could he experiment some more with that? It is all ifs and buts so I will leave it to Sunday to see how the gaffer uses the game. So what about Wigan Athletic? Their nickname is the Latics and the game goes down in history as the first ever time that the two teams have met. Wigan have played against 22 other Scottish teams in 30 games and have a record of 12 won, 11 lost and 7 drawn. Lets hope that score is evened up by the end of play on Saturday. They last lost to Dundee in season 2015-16. They drew with Chesterfield on Wednesday and beat Tranmere Rovers in the previous game. With Rangers having already played three competitive matches, that should make us firm favourites to win with a reasonable score no matter who plays. For those who like a Quiz Question, 14 players have played for Wigan and Rangers. Tavernier Waghorn and Cal Naismith are the easy ones that I got but I am sure many can name far more. As ever: C'mon the Gers!!!
  21. McGregor Tavernier Goldson Katic Flanagan Jack Murphy Coulibally Ejaria Kent Morelos If true it seems Gerrard has not managed to stop the dressing room leak. One thing is for sure it is not Miller this time.
  22. Having just returned from an extended family holiday in the unspoiled blue skies of the Ionian Sea, I know just how hot it is in Eastern Europe at the moment. With temperatures well over 30degC, the heat will certainly be on the Rangers team that plays in Macedonia later this afternoon. However, anything less than progression into the next Europa League qualifying round would only increase that heat further - both on the manager and his players, not to mention those that sanctioned all the summer changes. Fortunately, unlike last year, I'd expect Rangers to obtain a positive result this evening. Yes, Shkupi showed themselves to be no mugs in the first leg and could easily have taken an away goal from Ibrox but, despite Rangers being inconsistent and heavy-legged at times, it really was 2-0 going on 6-0 and only poor finishing stopped what should have been a home rout. No matter, Rangers can ill-afford complacency later as it was only very late in the game, they grabbed that all-important second goal which should offer the kind of cushion we lacked this time last season. This will enable Rangers - if not to sit in - but to retain a solid shape and look to make the most of any space on the counter against a Shkupi side that did leave gaps when we played at pace at Ibrox. Although it will again be left to the recently misfiring Alfredo Morelos to be our main goal-scoring threat, the likes of Jamie Murphy and Josh Windass will support him from deeper, wider areas and they may be the key to making the tie safe. Arguably the main positive from the first leg was how much stronger Rangers looked defensively. Not only did Connor Goldson and Nikola Katic stroll through the game at centre-half, the more defensively-minded Jon Flanagan compliments the attacking James Tavernier nicely at left-back and that should offer us peace of mind in defence. In turn, although losing Scott Arfield to injury is a short-term midfield blow, we still have several options in the engine room and a combination of McCrorie, Jack and Candeias might be favoured tonight, with Docherty and Ejaria equally keen to be involved at some point. Although we're still short of 2-3 further signings (especially in attack), we do have depth in the squad and it will be interesting to see if Steven Gerrard changes his formation tonight with the opportunity to go to three at the back apparently interesting him giving the pursuit of Jake Cooper from Millwall. Aidan Wilson and Kyle Bradley do offer that option via their inclusion in the squad. Unfortunately, it seems this game has come too early for Umar Sadiq and Lassana Coulibaly who are a couple of weeks behind the rest of the team in their pre-season preparations. As such, Zak Rudden may be asked to offer a goal threat from the bench this evening. Meanwhile, left-sided players such as Declan John and Glenn Middleton will also want to make the team with the latter impressing a substitute last week. In conclusion though, other than Ryan Jack for the injured Arfield, I'd expect the same XI that started the first leg to be asked to finish the job tonight. It may well be the system is changed slightly to more of a 4-2-3-1 with Candeias moved back out to the right wing but, even if the 4-3-3 from last Thursday evening is retained, Rangers should have more than enough in their locker to be comfortable this afternoon. No complacency and no excuses please. Let's get the job done.
  23. Ibrox sold out for this match, once again Rangers fans prove we are the best supporters in the world. SG enters into his first European match as a manager and he will have the backing of the tremendous Rangers fans. You can tell this early how determined & excited the gaffer is already, he will demand his players give their all in every match this season, let's just hope we get off to a flyer in this match! I am confident we will win this match, I just hope we hammer them tonight which I think we will. The game will be shown live on BT Sport 1. Coverage begins at 19:15. The game will also be available to RangersTV subscribers outwith the UK. Premier Sports – will show the AWAY leg live. FK Shkupi were founded back in 2012 due to a merge with another club FK Sloga Jugomagnat. Before the merge Shkupi were called KF Zafer. After the merge they started in the fourth division of Macedonian football and they only made it back into the top division in season 2015/16.Shkupi fans have been known to steal the oppositions flags & banners during the match.FK Shkupi finished fourth in the Macedonian league last season, finishing with a record of 13W, 12D & 11L. They only made it into the Europa League by one point. Sileks narrowly missed out on European Football. Shkupi didn’t enjoy a good cup run, they were knocked out by Vardar in the Last 16. They drew 1-1 in the first leg but got beaten 2-0 in the second leg putting them out.The clubs top scorer last season was Alen Jasharovski who scored 13 goals in 35 appearances. Rangers won’t have to worry about Alen as he has now moved on from Shkupi signing for Kosovo side Prishtina. FK Shkupi have no current record in a European competition. This will be their first season competing in the UEFA Europa League.
  24. When Rangers director Alistair Johnston spoke of being 'ahead of the curve' after our Scottish Cup semi-final defeat to Celtic, many fans were rightly confused. Surely a 4-0 capitulation against our biggest rivals wasn't a sign of 'making progress' as Johnston suggested? More so when we considered our ongoing battle for anything down to fourth place in the Premiership table. Johnstone did quality his comments somewhat by referring to tougher recent years and his point about 'not being swayed by the emotions of one game' may not have gone down well but he was correct about that to an extent. A decent win and performance against Hearts the following week did prove that. Unfortunately, a further humiliation at Parkhead quickly brought attention back onto the board, as well as Graeme Murty and his players with supporters again angered by this team's cowardice at the home of our greatest rivals. Murty, rightly or wrongly, was quickly made the scapegoat. With that in mind the announcement of Steven Gerrard as new manager bought Johnston and the rest of the Rangers board some much needed goodwill (and time). Gerrard's impressive playing CV and an excellent press conference (even Dave King spoke well) meant the negativity of the previous couple of weeks was forgotten about with fans instead looking forward to next season as the thought of a Gerrard-led Rangers brought back a renewed confidence about the future. That outlook has been undoubtedly helped by subsequent interim results on the pitch. Whilst our performances against Kilmarnock and Aberdeen were again disjointed and lacked quality, a first win of the season over Killie (whom Celtic couldn't beat this campaign) and a decent comeback at Pittodrie means we have second place in our own hands to grab this weekend. Hearts also beating this Sunday's opponents means Hibs can only top us via a six goal win which - our poor form aside - still seems very unlikely though we can certainly expect an attacking barrage at Easter Road. Fortunately, the three games this season have all been very tight so as much as we can't be overly confident, Hibs' return of two wins from three of those games arguably isn't a fair reflection of the matches. In the first game last August, John Beaton may as well have had a Hibs top on as he sent off Ryan Jack for nothing after 35mins at 1-1, whilst James Tavernier was the guilty party as we threw away a fine comeback in the second Ibrox match in February. Ironically, in what was one of our worst away performances of the season, we were perhaps fortunate to take all three points at Easter Road in December. All in all, predicting the outcome of Sunday's game isn't an easy task. From a Rangers point of view, after a dreadful first half reaction to a dreadful penalty decision awarded by the always dreadful Steven McLean in Tuesday's match against Aberdeen, it was slightly heartening to see us dominate the second 45mins and go onto grab a deserved equaliser. As such, one would hope the players would take some much needed confidence from that ahead of this week. Unfortunately, two crucial players from that game are both suspended with Alfredo Morelos and Ross McCrorie missing out. Whether or not this will mean a change in system - as well as personnel with Graham Dorrans also injured - remains to be seen but it's unlikely with the usual 4-2-3-1 preferred. As such, other than replacing the three unavailable players, it's doubtful there will be further changes. In defence, Jimmy Nicholl and Jonatan Johansson will have been encouraged by our clean sheet against Killie and only a dubious penalty conceded from at Pittodrie. As much as Rangers fans have rightly been concerned with the performances of Russell Martin since David Bates was injured in March, the return of Bates has coincided with an improvement at the back. Jak Alnwick has also done well in goal with Foderingham injured. James Tavernier and Andy Halliday have been less convincing of late at full-back but should see out the season there on Sunday. Martin Boyle may well miss the game but Brandon Barker will be a threat from wide areas in were key battles in previous matches. Moving into midfield and this is where Rangers have really struggled to find any sort of balance of late. Often outnumbered and certainly outgunned, only Ross McCrorie has really shone since he was moved back into the engine room after injury. With him missing and Dorrans also injured again, the management team's decision on who plays here this week will be the key to obtaining a positive result. And we do have several options... Greg Docherty is likely to be the direct replacement for the mobility of McCrorie with Sean Goss expected to provide the creative guile. Jason Holt's energy and work-rate may not always result in the attacking qualities we need but it would be a surprise to see Jordan Rossiter start after such a long lay-off - especially as the pace of the game is expected to be extremely lively. Ironically, none of the three expected first choice players being overly comfortable in a more forward role may help us gain an element of control in deeper areas in games we've needed it previously. The fitness of Josh Windass might also prove important in terms of our tactical choices against a Hibs midfield who usually impress. In attack, once again Daniel Candeias and Jamie Murphy will most likely start in the wide areas - though Murphy's improved second half display against Aberdeen in more of a central, free role was noted by this observer. Glenn Middleton has being doing very well for the development squad on the left wing but it would be a huge surprise to see him make the team on Sunday. Up front, Jason Cummings is the obvious stand-in for Morelos and the former Hibs striker will be keen to do well up against his former clubs. The Rangers bench will be interesting with guys like Herrera, O'Halloran and Dodoo perhaps brought in from the cold for the last time in their respective Rangers careers. In actual fact, they may not be the only players experiencing their last Rangers game this weekend. David Bates is off to Hamburg, whilst Martin and Goss will return to their parent clubs along with Cummings and Murphy (who may be the only ones asked to sign permanently over the summer). Hitherto fringe players like Halliday and Holt may also move on. Meanwhile, saleable assets such as Windass and Tavernier have been linked with moves away in recent days so it's not beyond the realms of possibility that Candeias and Docherty are the only members of my proposed first XI below that are involved next season. Indeed, that stark observation is perhaps the easiest way to sum up what has been a disappointing season for the club. Yes, Alistair Johnston is right to ask us to be objective in our analysis but not enough real progress has been evident on the park and this has been compounded by our choices in the dugout. In that respect, the appointment of Steven Gerrard is something to look forward to and it seems obvious player turnover will be very high if we're to genuinely improve over the summer. As I end our final match preview of the season, Sunday's result is important for various reasons but even if we do finish second in the league, as long as we remain so far behind Celtic and our football operation lacks proper management then unfortunately, we remain behind the curve. A win over Hibs would be a great way to secure European football and help us improve our fortunes. Season ticket renewals have again shown our wonderful fans to be up for it. Let's hope the players are too.
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