Find a way to win
This Gers team must understand you can’t play brilliant football every week but what you have to do is what we did with guys like big Goughie and Coisty... Robertson wants a return of idols’ attitude
FIND a way to win. That was Walter Smith’s mantra and for David Robertson their ability to do it was the recipe for Rangers’ dominance.
And it is something he knows the current Light Blues squad must discover if they are to end a decade-long wait to bring major silverware back to Ibrox.
Their inability to dig out a victory at all costs, particularly in away games, was evident again on Sunday as Steven Gerrard’s men were held to a 2-2 draw at Easter Road.
It was their fourth point dropped in eight games this season following last month’s Livingston stalemate when they failed to break down a stuffy Lions side.
A trip across the M8 has proved problematic for Gerrard – they also lost twice to relegated Hearts in the league and Scottish Cup in the early part of the year.
In fact, Rangers have won just four out of 10 domestic games on the road in all competitions in 2020, which resulted in last season’s second-half collapse and threatens to undermine this term’s ambitions unless it is addressed.
Rivals Celtic fell behind in their last two Premiership fixtures but came back to take all three points. They found a way to win.
After recovering from Drey
Wright’s opener to take the lead through goals from Alfredo Morelos and Scott Arfield, Rangers were on course for victory until Christian Doidge headed a leveller.
Martin Boyle was offside in the build-up and there were other decisions from referee Don Robertson that Rangers felt went against them.
But despite their grievances the away side had enough chances to come out on top and that is what will irk them most with another tough test coming up in the league at Fir Park on Sunday.
During his second spell as Rangers boss, Smith led his side to an incredible League Cup
Final win over St Mirren with nine men. In his first stint they secured a backs-to-the-wall Old Firm Scottish Cup semi-final victory despite playing 80 minutes with 10 men after Robertson was sent off.
And the former full-back reckons that winning mentality instilled in him when he moved to Ibrox from Aberdeen is what the current crop must find.
Robertson, 51, reckons it’s both psychological and tactical. He said: “It’s about finding a way to win. I can’t stress that enough.
“Teams always raise their game against the Old Firm and you have to be prepared. I played in a team of winners at Rangers like John Brown, Goughie, Stuart
McCall, Ian Ferguson, Ally McCoist, Mark Hateley...
“You can go through everyone and they’re all just winners. I’m not saying the current Rangers team are not winners but everyone knows Easter Road is a hard place to go and you need a different mentality.
“You won’t be able to play brilliant football all the time. In my experience in coaching you have to know the league you’re in and once you understand it you have to find a way to win.
“The fact Rangers hadn’t conceded all season then lost two at Easter Road means it was maybe a confidence issue.
“And it will be interesting to see the next game at Fir Park because that won’t be easy but they need to show a reaction.
“Steven Gerrard put it down to a blip so we’ll have to see. Let’s
Teams raise their game against the Old Firm so you have to be prepared DAVID ROBERTSON KNOWS WHAT GERS NEED
not forget, teams like Hibs have improved a lot and will take points off the Old Firm over the course of the season.
“But it’s about hunger and desire and if you’ve not got it… I also think Rangers need a big target guy at times if they can’t break teams down so they can mix it up a bit.
“I ’ ve watched some of the games involving the Old Firm against the likes of Hamilton and Livingston and they just sit in and defend, defend, defend.
“They find it dif f icult to break them down but if you throw a long ball to a big guy up front – like Celtic have with Odsonne Edouard – then it causes a bit of mayhem. It might not be pretty but you’ve got to find another way to win.
“When Rangers had Morelos and Jermain Defoe they couldn’t play any other way than on the ground, although to be fair they’ve brought in Cedric Itten, and teams found it easier to defend against. “With Mark Hateley, Duncan Ferguson for a small period and Davie Dodds before that there was always a presence up front so if you couldn’t break a team down on the ground then you had the option of playing longer.” Robertson won a dozen major honours during six years at Ibrox and admitted he knew the demands from the moment that he walked through the front door. And that’s a challenge Gerrard’s men must rise to. He said: “When you walk through the doors at Ibrox you know what it means to play for the club.
“You’re not just playing for yourself and the team, you’re fulfilling the fans’ dreams and it should be an honour. But there are probably some players in the current team who are looking for their next move.
“When Celtic had two games postponed last month they were talking about Rangers being 11 points ahead but it’s always been the same in Scottish football – I remember the league used to be over after five games!
“There will still be a lot of twists and turns and Steven Gerrard is a young manager who came into a difficult situation and has done well to get to where he is.”