Redemption

“So it has been touched on but we need to nail that down because it could possibly cost us.”

The dismissal of Cosgrove should have been the spark that Rangers needed to clinch the win that would have kept them top of the Premiership standings.

But a lacklustre performance in the final third didn’t give Ibrox much hope and those ambitions were further dashed when Morelos headed up the tunnel with 25 minutes remaining.

Almost a year to the day since he rejected the chance to become Rangers boss, Derek McInnes had his second win at Ibrox with Aberdeen.

The sense of satisfaction amongst the Reds contrasted starkly with the mood in the Light Blues camp on a night that was undoubtedly an opportunity missed for Rangers.

“We were sitting in the dressing room looking at ourselves after the game,” McAuley said. “Our standards dropped individually and as a team. That’s why we lost the game.

“I’m not sure [if we couldn’t cope with being top]. It was the first time in a long time the club had been top of the league. We didn’t talk about that before the game.

“The focus was on winning the game. We knew what Aberdeen were going to do and they did it very well.

“They won a lot of freekicks in the first half, put a lot of balls into the box and scored off one of them. We were disappointed we didn’t defend that better. That’s why we are looking at our own performance as our own downfall.”

Having moved top of the table with that win over Hearts on Sunday, Rangers could now find themselves third when they take to the field at Dens Park this weekend.

The teams either side of them – Kilmarnock and Celtic – will meet at Parkhead tomorrow but the focus from Gerrard and his players is all on the task in hand against Dundee.

McAuley “Second is nowhere at this club – that’s it. We need to make sure we win on Sunday and win going forward.

“It’s a massive club and you have a massive responsibility on and off the pitch to make sure we win. We want to get back to the top of the league and stay there.

“It’s certainly different to clubs I’ve played at before. It’s intense but it’s enjoyable. It’s a great pressure.

“That demand to win, day in and day out, is what you should have as a footballer. Everyone here has the desire as a group to go and challenge.

“From what I’ve seen so far, it’s a really competitive league. It’s a tough league, it’s tight. We know we have work to do.

“Bubbling under the surface we have that desire to do the hard work. We’ll get back on the training pitch and hopefully put it right on Sunday.”