How many games is a blip?

[Tannochsidebear 2,322]

League results since SCSF;

 

P9 W2 D4 L3 F12 A16 with no clean sheets.

 

Add in the unacceptable SCF for a round 10 games with only 2 wins, one a last minute winner at that.

 

I'm excluding the league cup as everyone (including MW) looked at that as our pre-season.

 

I don't have the answers, and I'm not calling for sackings or anything, but the number in total denial over our decline in the last 5 months is not helping.

 

There has to be a degree of honesty about our situation. We brought in 11 new players after getting rid of around the same number in the summer. Some are well known faces in the twilight of their careers, some youthful prospects at the start of their careers. It seemed on paper to be progress. To date, it hasn't worked with little signs of anything positive happening.

 

Take it back 12 months. MW brought in a similar number of new players, imposed his style and belief on them during a similar timescale of pre-season, and we started the season magnificently with fast, free-flowing, attractive football, scoring lots of goals. Yes it was a lower division but we started against St Mirren, Hibs, QotS & Raith, who aren't much different from Hamilton, Dundee, Kilmarnock, Motherwell in most people's eyes.

 

Why has it gone so horribly wrong this season when it went so right 12 months ago?

 

We are not pressing high up the field which we done last year. Our pace of passing has slowed significantly. Our number of goals has decreased alarmingly. Our individual errors have increased, although it is fair to say our defence were guilty of this last season also.

 

Every Rangers fan you have spoken to over the Warburton era agrees that our defence is rubbish. At first it was give W&K time to gel, then it was they don't get cover from midfield. Most of us called for MW to bring in at least one proper centre half last January, and when it didn't come we said MW must have targets lined up that weren't available until the summer. From the first signing of the summer we waited for the proper centre half to be announced. One squad player after another comes in, Clint Hill in as cover, but no centre half appeared before the 31 Aug deadline, to much dismay. Again, we read excuses about availability, finance, style of play, scouting. Again, they are simply excuses for failure to sort out the one area so desperately requiring major surgery. Senderos clearly was waiting for another club to come in for him, and when the window closed, took this option. Hopefully he can begin to settle in after a debut to forget.

 

Some would suggest this seasons woes are down to a lack of confidence in our defence spreading throughout the team. Others prefer to say our best players are out of form or not match fit yet. Some say bringing in so many players takes time to gel, ignoring our fantastic start last season in similar circumstances. We all have our thoughts on what is wrong. It's a pretty long list.

 

We will hear all week about paying back the fans starting on Saturday at Ibrox. What else can they say after such a capitulation at the home of our enemy? By Saturday the pain may have eased again, and if we manage to secure a victory, any sort of victory, we may hope that the OF game was the wake-up call or turning point.

 

I'm happy to give the manager and his players all season to get it right. The only thing I expect is for us to see evidence of coaching improving the players, and to finish second. With a budget dwarfing all ten rivals for second spot, there is absolutely no excuse for not finishing ahead of the rest. And in January we must use the window to improve the defence at the 4th attempt. As a Rangers fan who has been at almost every game in the last 30 years at home and abroad, it is fair to say my expectations have never been lower, so there is a realisation that our club has been raped and almost killed, and the recovery will continue over the next few years before we can be financially competitive again. But that does not give a free ride to mediocrity.

 

Look again at the form guide at the top of this page. It's hard to even call that mediocre.

[jhunter 0]

IMO inexperience from both DW and MW

 

they had a plan on how to play that was fresh and exciting and its now totally nullified as everyone has watched it for the past 12 months

 

what is really disturbing though is how absolutely sluggish/done in we look

 

last year's passing/possession football that didn't always come off last season has been abandoned

 

1-5 celtc away

2-3 hibs sc final

2-3 hibs away

2-3 hibs away

2-3 falkirk away

1-2 falkirk away

1-2 hibs away

 

For 11

Agin 21

 

does that look like a plan that's working?

[der Berliner 3,290]

No-one is happy about the way the season has gone thus far, and that includes the management team and the players. I for one doubt that they do nothing about it ... as is intimated every now and then.

 

Extending stats to last season is pretty pointless, unless one enjoys statistical excercises. For we have 11 new players, an ever shifting playing squad (have we started with the same 11 twice in any of our competitive games thus far) and a couple of problems that have not been sufficiently solved. To project the future right now, not least after yesterday, will lead to nothing. The team has to find its feet and needs to start winning games, glorious or ugly. Nothing else will help.

[chilledbear 16]

The form and results between the Semi-Final and the Final last season says a lot for me. It would never have been tolerated by someone lke WS or JW.

 

Our Manager really has no experience in Management and so far it is showing.

[chilledbear 16]

No-one is happy about the way the season has gone thus far, and that includes the management team and the players. I for one doubt that they do nothing about it ... as is intimated every now and then.

 

Extending stats to last season is pretty pointless, unless one enjoys statistical excercises. For we have 11 new players, an ever shifting playing squad (have we started with the same 11 twice in any of our competitive games thus far) and a couple of problems that have not been sufficiently solved. To project the future right now, not least after yesterday, will lead to nothing. The team has to find its feet and needs to start winning games, glorious or ugly. Nothing else will help.

 

Not sure how long you have followed Rangers, but some have more experience of Rangers and Scottish football, the Manager will only get so long.

[craig 5,199]

The single biggest issue for me isnt necessarily the personnel. It is one simple statement that TB makes.... "Fast, free-flowing football". That is the problem. It has disappeared and I still dont think you can put that down to personnel.

 

Last season we played with high tempo all over the pitch both with and without possession of the ball.

 

This season that has stopped, disappeared, and we look a much weaker team for it.

 

You dont actually need pacy players for this fast football, you just need players who can control the ball quickly, move it on and then offer themselves in space quickly too. Which means there is no reason Barton or Kranjcar should be slowing our play down - they themselves arent fast but their touch is usually to a very high standard - which means one touch to control and then another to move the ball on.

 

Another thing that is alarming is that we no longer are pressing the ball high up the pitch. Saturday we allowed ourselves to sit very, very deep and put nigh on zero pressure on the ball in the opposing final 3rd. And I dont think that has much to do with Celtic' play. We looked like it was a deliberate tactic to not pressure the ball high, which was a mistake in my opinion - it allowed Celtic to play out from the back with no pressure and also meant their wingers didnt have to even think about assisting defensively.

 

So many things went wrong on Saturday - but that doesnt make us a bad team.

[Bearman 9]

Criticising Rangers? I've been doing that all my life!

 

It is concerning for me anyway that somehow instead of the bandwagon trudging on under MW (The Magic Hat) it has stuttered almost into mediocrity under his guidance?

 

I thought the signings of Krancjar and Barton especially would have had us stepping it up a notch or two, how wrong and misguided was me. I was never ever going to be convinced with Hill though or Senderos given he wasn't offered a contract until the window crashed down. Crooks we haven't seen yet, but Rossiter has been a rabbit out the magic hat, Windass and what game time he's had tells me he's our best player tbh, even better than Barrie.

 

Garner and Dodoo in fairness haven't really had the opportunity to show their worth, but Garner did manage to score on his 'Old Firm' debut and was probably overshadowed a little by the other debutante striker from the opposition maybe.

 

If I've missed our other signings out then apologies...still think Halliday, Holt, Forrester, and O'Halloran should be first on the team sheet along with Lee, Tav, Barrie, Waggy and Fod.

[der Berliner 3,290]

Not sure how long you have followed Rangers, but some have more experience of Rangers and Scottish football, the Manager will only get so long.

 

1983ish ... just in case. And we have had many many poor weeks and months along the way, through all eras.

[RANGERRAB 3,306]

The form and results between the Semi-Final and the Final last season says a lot for me. It would never have been tolerated by someone lke WS or JW.

 

Our Manager really has no experience in Management and so far it is showing.

 

Your last line is one which too many of us don't seem to realise. Prior to getting the Rangers job MW only had something like 18months managing Brentford & it's beginning to show now IMO.

 

During the summer something needed to be done about the number of goals we were conceding. We needed better quality at CB. Bringing in Hill & Senderos doesnt look like the answer does it?

 

Between now and the end of this year will determine whether MW has a future as Rangers manager. A top three finish is imperative

Edited September 12, 2016 by RANGERRAB

[compo 6,227]

I would say this we have to bring in a good defensive coach to sort out this mess at the back someone said to me on Saturday night in the house , they look our defence he was talking about as if they had just met on the subway on the way to Ibrox