I’ve come from the Middleton of nowhere
RANGERS WIDE BOY IS JUST FEARLESS
GLENN MIDDLETON hopes a no-fear attitude can help him force his way into Steven Gerrard’s plans at Rangers.
The Light Blues live wire has earned rave reviews from fans with a couple of impressive cameos.
Middleton set up two goals in the 6-0 pre-season romp against Bury and was handed his competitive debut off the bench in the 2-0 win against Macedonian side Shkupi at Ibrox on Thursday.
The Scotland youth star replaced Josh Windass and his direct play has led to calls from some supporters for the 18-year-old to be given a starting slot.
Former Norwich youth prospect Middleton is confident he can make an impact after admitting his surprise at being given a chance so early under Gerrard.
The teenager was one of a handful of youngsters who travelled to Spain for a pre-season training camp and has made a good impression on the new boss.
Middleton said: “Anyone would be lying if they said they didn’t have confidence that they could break into the first team.
“It’s the same target for all the young boys – we come in every day, show the manager what we can do and hopefully get our names on the team-sheet as soon as possible.
“I don’t really fear much so if we are losing or even if I’ve not being playing my best I’ll still go at my man every time. I’m confident I can always make that one chance for the team to get a goal.
“I’ve only played 15 minutes of BY GAVIN BERRY first-team football so it’s not much but I just need to keep building.
“No games are different apart from the fact there might be a few more fans there. You still have to do the dirty work for the team and try to impress as well.
“I need to show the manager what I can do in training every day and if I get the opportunity in games just take it from there.
“You’re never sure what to expect when a new manager comes in, no matter who it is, so it’s just a case of trying to take your opportunity.
“When you’re given a chance it’s a big boost. It means a lot to be given the faith and chances the manager has given me.
“So hopefully I can keep showing what I’m capable of.”
Gers fans have been raving about Middleton on social media but the lifelong fan admitted his family, who moved south when he was just eight due to dad Duncan’s work commitments, keep him grounded.
Middleton said: “It’s always nice to get some recognition but it doesn’t mean much the next day because you have to show everyone what you can do again.
“My family try to keep me quite grounded so I’m not into checking what has been said on social media. It’s about taking it day by day.”
Gerrard described the victory in the first leg of their first round qualifier as “satisfactory” and Middleton admitted there’s room for improvement ahead of Tuesday’s return in Skopje. The winger said: “It wasn’t the perfect performance but it’s a good win.
“The job is far from done so we just get back to work on the training pitch, try and fix the things that maybe weren’t as perfect as they should have been.”
Ryan Jack also came off the bench for his first competitive appearance since a knee injury midway through last season wrecked his debut campaign.
The former Aberdeen man was one of the players involved in the calamitous defeat to Luxembourg minnows Progres Niederkorn at the same stage of the Europa League last season.
And Jack admitted James Tavernier’s late spot kick to seal the 2-0 win was a relief as it gave Gers a bit of breathing space after a single-goal win at home to Progres last year didn’t prove to be enough.
GLENN MIDDLETON
“We have seen in Europe that big teams can get shocked. Last year wasn’t good enough and it still haunts me to this day how bad a result it actually was.
“It will definitely be on my mind going into next week that we don’t want a repeat of that.”