GERRARD’S GERS WILL NEED TIME TO CLICK

While it’s too early to judge the new broom at Ibrox, manager will still be looking to get his own message across

THE early weeks of the season are all about progression for Rangers – both in terms of their performances and Europa League qualifying.

You can’t read too much into players or the manager at this stage of the campaign but you do want to see the side getting better week by week, game by game.

And Steven Gerrard will be demanding an improvement from Rangers against NK Osijek on Thursday night after the somewhat underwhelming 2-0 aggregate win over FK Shkupi in the first round of the Europa League.

Before a ball was kicked, I said it was going to take time. And it will take time.

I have been there myself as a manager when you are signing that many players in one window and it takes time for players to get to know each other’s characters – their strengths, their weaknesses – and to become a team.

Things don’t just click together on the park or off the park.

The positive for Rangers is that they got through the first tie with a home win in the first leg and two clean sheets and the victory really should have been more comfortable for them.

They had loads and loads of chances and they couldn’t capitalise but at least they were creating those opportunities and got in good positions.

It is still very early days and everyone knows you don’t get time at Rangers. But the bigger picture is more important for Steven and his coaches right now. While the new players are settling in and getting to know their team-mates, the ones from last season have come back

with a point to prove.

But nobody, and nothing, can be judged at this point in time. It is ludicrous to say you can form a solid opinion on the manager, staff or team right now.

We all know the expectation levels at Rangers, though, and that is why they have to progress by teams like Shkupi and Osijek. There are no excuses in these matches.

In every aspect, they will be getting better and better every time they train together and play together. Whether that is things like set-plays for or against or the smaller details about

It takes time – things don’t just click on and off the park

passages of play, you want an improvement day on day.

The details are fine in football and that can only be mastered, both with the ball and without it, by working together and playing together more and more. These are the aspects the manager will be focusing on in that sense. But, right now, Steven will be looking first and foremost at winning these games and that will always be the most important thing.

He will want to see the style of play coming through, though, and expect to see his players picking up on what he wants them to do and how he wants his side to look.

When it comes to Osijek this week, like it was with Shkupi in the first round, it is the win that is ultimately the most important thing.

Steven seems to be a real straight talker and I think the fans like that and can relate to that because they have maybe not had that in a manager for a while.

He is open, honest and tells it like it is, as he did after the Shkupi game, and the players will be seeing that and picking up on that as well. That might give them a fright, if you like.

I think the sugar-coating has been clear to see in recent years at certain times and it is quite refreshing for the fans to have someone like Gerrard being straight to the point. It will be for the players as well.

They know that the standards have got to come up and you have to get better because if you are not producing you will find yourself out of the team or away from the club.

Steven has set the standards sky high and the fans like that because they haven’t had that from a manager for some time.

Rangers, obviously, want to get through these early rounds and try and build a bit of momentum but the manager wants to see things being done properly as well.

While you are progressing through the rounds, the performance levels have to rise and the details – like the shape and the tactics – are things he will be looking at just now.

When you look at the start to the Premiership, with Aberdeen, Motherwell and Celtic coming up away from home in the first four weeks, Rangers can’t afford to have any bad habits hanging over from the European fixtures.

The league campaign is the most important one for Rangers this season and they have to get off to a good start. That is why Steven will want to build some momentum and get some confidence from the European fixtures.

That comes through winning games, but also from doing things properly in those games.