BEAT REDS OR IT’S DEAD
Pedro admits it’s win or bust
PEDRO CAIXINHA admits it’s win or bust for Rangers at Pittodrie in their bid to finish best of the rest. The Light Blues slipped a dirty dozen points behind Aberdeen in second place last night after drawing a blank at Kilmarnock. There are just seven games left to seal the spot chairman Dave King reckoned was the least they should expect when he reviewed the season in August. Rangers face the Dons on Sunday and although they’ll
take on Derek McInnes’ side at Ibrox again during the run-in, Portuguese boss Caixinha all but admitted the Scottish Cup will be all they have left if they don’t win in three days’ time.
The 46-year-old said: “It’s getting difficult. We know we need to play twice against Aberdeen and they have to play against all of the top six again.
“The maths says it can still be done but the next game will be crucial to understand if we are able to or not.
“If we don’t win on Sunday against Aberdeen we don’t deserve to be in second position. But that is my challenge. It is something we need to prove to ourselves.
“We are Rangers. We want to fight. At this moment this is the challenge we need to try to fight for at the moment.”
Rangers had a frustrating night in front of goal as Rugby Park keeper Freddie Woodman pulled off a string of fine stops. But there wasn’t enough quality or direction in the final third to merit the victory.
Caixinha defended his decision to name his starting XI the day before the game, including debut defenders David Bates and Myles Beerman.
However, Killie boss Lee McCulloch admitted it gave his side the motivation they needed to claim a vital point that bolsters their bid to retain their top-flight status.
Caixinha said: “I am not a bluffing guy. Did you try to think of it from the opposite side, from Lee as Kilmarnock manager?
“Maybe he needs to think more about it. The only change you saw was Conor Sammon on the right and Jordan Jones on the left.
“Is that too much? I don’t think so.
“I need to give confidence to my team. That was the message for the opponents and for all of Scotland. But it was especially a message for our players to say I am counting on you.
“It doesn’t matter which 11 we have. Let’s go to war. Would I do it again? If I need to do it I will do it for sure.
“There were moments when we tried to do what we intended to do and in those moments I need to be happy. They were good moments and we had scoring chances. We got better on defensive set-pieces – we changed to zonal and it went well.
“On the offensive setpieces we were okay but it’s not enough. We are Rangers, we have a culture of winning and getting three points all the time so we cannot be happy drawing the game.
“We need to reinforce to the players the demands of playing at such a massive club, which needs to win all the time – and we need to be angry when we don’t do it.
“We should be angry that we didn’t and the frustration is we didn’t do it. I don’t like to analyse individuals but I can make an exception for David and Myles because it’s the first time the two of them played.
“Both are defenders and we had a clean sheet so at least that means they did their work. They did what we expected them to do and I’m happy with them.”
Kilmarnock remain four points off the top six after a third draw on the spin.
Interim boss McCulloch said: “We changed our game plan slightly after Pedro named his team.
“I’ve never heard it being done in Scottish football although they do it in rugby.
“I didn’t change my starting 11 but I used it in the dressing room in part of the team talk.
“If a manager wants to name his team a day before a game he can.
“I wouldn’t do it. I wait until an hour and 15 minutes before the game to give it in to the referee.
“I’d never be critical of another manager. Disrespectful? No.”