KENNY CAN STILL BE KEY, INSISTS BIG ECK
Bert’s blaster helped lift Eck fan heat over cup...now it’s Pedro’s turn
ALEX McLEISH insists Kenny Miller can still play a part for Rangers this term if he and Pedro Caixinha are singing from the same hymn sheet. The striker was dropped last month and sent to play with the Under-20s at Brentford.
Miller returned to first team training during the international break but didn’t feature on Friday night as the Gers beat St Johnstone. McLeish said: “It seems Kenny is back on board in terms of being welcomed back to first-team status.
“Whether he takes his place again or whether he is a super sub – and whether he wants to be a super sub – he is still very useful in that dressing room, especially if Pedro and him have a good relationship.”
AS the medal was placed around his neck and he hoisted the silverware towards the Rangers fans, the weight lifted off Alex McLeish’s shoulders. He wasn’t a doubter, he was a winner.
It was the first of seven occasions where the ticker tape would fall around McLeish as Light Blues boss. It wasn’t the most memorable, but it was one of the most important.
McLeish had heard the criticism and answered the questions following his move from Hibernian to replace Dick Advocaat but he knew he would be judged on his record at Ibrox. Simply, he had to win.
The famous victory over Celtic – sealed by Bert Konterman’s extra-time thunderbolt – put him on his way, before Ayr United were swept aside just weeks later as Rangers clinched League Cup glory.
It was a success that immediately endeared McLeish to his new supporters and one that set him on track for a Scottish Cup win that May and a Treble the following season.
Now, the current incumbent at Ibrox has silverware in his sights. For Pedro Caixinha, the League Cup could be just as significant as it was for McLeish.
After a mixed start to the Premiership campaign, Rangers head to Hampden on Sunday aiming to make amends for their double semi-final disappointments last term.
And McLeish knows only too well the importance of hitting the ground running and getting the first piece of silverware in the trophy cabinet.
“You have no idea how big winning the League Cup in 2002 was for me,” he said.
“Celtic had beaten Rangers in the times before Dick stepped down as manager.
“You go in there with a preconception of ‘what if I never win a game against Celtic?’ What if I don’t win my first game?
“There was all this negativity and parrots on one shoulder saying one thing and on the other they were saying ‘What if you do? It will be brilliant’.
“The first goal was to make sure we weren’t embarrassed by Celtic and winning that League Cup semi-final when Bert scored the winner gave me reassurance that what I was doing was right.
“They were also close games and it is fine details that can separate a game like a worldy from Big Bert.
“That cemented my beginning with Rangers. It was a weight lifted off my shoulders.
“When I first came in as Rangers manager eye- brows were raised at me taking over from Dick. “That was the first thing in my head as I thought ‘why should I be daunted by it?’ “If I am coming in to take over from Dick then that wasn’t the way to approach. “The better was to think: ‘what if I do well in this job?’ What if we usurp Celtic? “That was the goal and t hat was t he thoughts in my mind. The mental side of this game is vital too.” It is Motherwell that stand between Caixinha
and a shot at Betfred Cup glory this weekend as Rangers return to Hampden once again.
THE Light Blues have recovered from their Old Firm defeat last month with back-to-back wins over Hamilton and St Johnstone and now have another chance to finally win three on the spin on Caixinha’s watch.
Victory on Sunday would be a moment to savour for the Portuguese, and one that could inspire his Ibrox squad.
“It sets t he bar high,” McLeish said. “It also gives the players an appetite where they say ‘we want to do this again’.
“It can be inspirational. That’s the kind of fillip it would give Rangers if they can get to the final and who knows, maybe even win it.
“As I said a few weeks ago, Pedro needs more time. There was a furore with some of the results.
“They gave him the money to spend so they have to give him the time to sort it out and fit guys into the system and rhythm and let them get the confidence.
“The St Johnstone game was a surprise for me for them to win so convincingly.
“I did not see the game, I was abroad, but by all accounts it was an accomplished performance.”
The wins at the SuperSeal Stadium and McDiarmid Park have eased some of the pressure on Caixinha as he prepares for a tough test against the Steelmen.
ACARLOS Pena double and Graham Dorrans strike saw the Gers emerge 3-0 winners over the Saints as they avoided a slip-up on Friday night.
And McLeish knows the Gers must retain that winning feeling for as long as possible if Caixinha is to silence his critics and win over his doubters.
Speaking on behalf of BT Sport, he said: “It is a huge game for him. We know every game is huge for Rangers anyway.
“Every league game, if it’s a draw, it’s a crisis. It always has been.
“Certainly in my day as well, I knew what ‘only’ getting a draw meant in the Premier League at that time.
“But he has come out with a great result against St Johnstone and that might just galvanise them, and set them on a good run of good form and confidence.
“It certainly would have given guys like Pena a bit of confidence and belief in themselves.
“I think it is time to go on a run for Rangers. I would expect them to beat Motherwell, despite Motherwell’s tremendous run of late.”