ABSOLUTE BEDLAM
BARRY FERGUSION: I always relished needle of Gers v Dons
IT’S almost 19 years since Lorenzo Amoruso thought he was the police commander as all hell broke loose at Pittodrie.
I can still see the big man standing there in front of thousands of seething Rangers and Aberdeen fans pleading with them to calm down.
All he was missing was the police hat!
Of course he had no chance of being heard. It was bedlam. Absolute bedlam.
Big Lorenzo was trying to restore order all on his own! I just remember telling him: “Let the police get on with it big man. We’re here to get a result”.
I can’t condone some of the scenes as the riot police got called in. But I have to admit I still fed off that energy from the stands.
It fired me up. I wasn’t the type to get intimidated by things on the side of the park and to be fair I don’t think anyone was on that occasion.
That energy from the stands always helped spur me on, the same at Ibrox when you had that corner of Aberdeen fans giving you pelters. It would add to the needle on the pitch and that’ s what makes these occasions.
I love fans being on the edge. I played on the edge and that’s what I look for in players now.
I relished games against Aberdeen. They always carried that needle. Their fans didn’t like us, we knew that, and it was always an absolute battle on the park no matter if it was Ibrox or Pittodrie. It was all-in, 11 v 11.
Not so much a particular one-on-one battle with an Aberdeen player it was everybody on the park but always within the laws of the game.
I always looked out for the fixture as it got the blood pumping and the supporters were a massive part of that.
So with the fixture coming back around this weekend I can only imagine what it must be l ike for the players not having that. I feel for them. I’d struggle to play in empty stadiums.
They have to find a new way to motivate themselves to do a job on Aberdeen.
There’s no doubt Derek McInnes will have his players fired up. To be fair the Rangers players so far this season have always managed to find a way.
I don’t know where it comes from whether it’s inside them anyway or from Steven Gerrard. Probably a bit of both.
Now they need to do it again against one of their biggest rivals. I’m looking forward to sitting down with a cool beer and watching this one. I think it will be an open game.
Aberdeen have impressed me in recent weeks. I’d go as far as to say it’s the strongest squad Derek has had since he went up there.
They didn’t turn up in the first game of the season against Gers and didn’t perform in the semi-final against Celtic on their last trip to Glasgow.
So Derek will want them to go out and make a point. They need to show they can match the Old Firm in Glasgow.
But Rangers are a well-oiled machine right now and it will be interesting to see how this one pans out. I expect some meaty challenges. The midfield battle will be fascinating. But Aberdeen not having Ross McCrorie will be a big miss – he is a very important player for them already.
Fair play to Ross for taking the opportunity to go and he’s formed a brilliant partnership with my nephew Lewis in there.
These are two guys with big futures and if I was them I’d be looking to push on this season and try to force my way into Steve Clarke’s squad for next summer’s Euros.
As I said though Rangers are in a good place and Steven has so many options to choose from. How on earth do you change a side that won 8-0 in their last fixture?
That’s the beauty of having a strong, competitive squad. I can see Alfredo Morelos coming back in up front.
It’ll depend on how he feels after international duty and his long flight back from South America and the manager will look his players in the eye to see if they are up for it.
People point to Morelos not scoring so many goals this season but he is bringing so much to the team that people probably don’t see.
He’s doing the dirty side of the game, works hard and occupies defenders constantly.
The manager has big decisions to make and that’s what you want. Of course George Edmundson and Jordan Jones won’t feature after being given their sevengame bans.
Gerrard has dealt really well with the situation. I’m sure he’d be more disappointed than angry with the two players.
Let the police get on with it big man. We’re here to get a result BARRY’S ADVICE FOR AMORUSO AT PITTODRIE
Who’s not made a mistake in life? These guys have now paid for their mistake.
I was taken aback by the length of the ban, it was a bit OTT. I thought it might be three games with a couple suspended.
But it’s done now. Rangers have handled the situation really well and it’s up to the players, when the time allows, to get their heads down and work their way back into the manager’s plans.