Stevie even has fringe lads up for it

BEFORE a ball was kicked this season, there were a lot of critics and doubters about Steven Gerrard because he had only managed at Under-18 level.

It is still early days, it is still early in the campaign, but you can see the change in the players that are still there from last season and the bit of belief Steven has given them.

His recruitment has been good and there is a mentality running through the squad now, and not just through what people would see as the first picks.

Look at someone like Andy Halliday. He has been called upon in the last two games against Maribor and Kilmarnock and come in and done really well. So the manager has kept players really happy and hungry and he knows he will need to call upon everyone at some stage of the season.

That mentality you need at Rangers is running right through the group now and the next four games – two against Ufa in the Europa League and against Motherwell and Celtic in the Premiership – could really set Rangers up for what they hope will be a successful season. Those games are an opportunity for the players to silence their critics, especially from last season, and if I am in that dressing room I am saying ‘we have got a chance to lay a marker’.

It is a chance for them to show that Rangers are back and prove where they are as a team and that is really important for the whole club.