It was wrong to axe Miller... he knows what club is all about

STILIYAN PETROV believes Rangers have blundered in axing Kenny Miller because he is one of the few Ibrox figures who truly understands the club’s identity.

The former Celtic midfielder has watched with interest as their Old Firm rivals have plunged further into disarray in the wake of Sunday’s 4-0 Scottish Cup semi-final thrashing.

Miller and club captain Lee Wallace — neither of whom featured at Hampden — have both been suspended pending an investigation into an alleged dressing-room bust-up with manager Graeme Murty.

With the 38-year-old striker out of contract this summer, Miller’s Rangers career is now over after three separate spells at the club.

Petrov insists that is a mistake, arguing the Ibrox side’s dire weekend display showed how much they need his brand of experience.

‘You can see the reaction of Kenny Miller and I am not surprised,’ said Petrov (right). ‘I have played against Kenny and he is the kind of man who doesn’t like to lose.

‘It hurts a lot — and will hurt for years to come — and Kenny knows that.

‘I don’t know what has happened behind closed doors. A lot of things happen and there are always two sides to a story.

‘But I would keep guys like Kenny because they know how to lead, to explain what Rangers is all about. Celtic have that with Scott Brown.

‘You need guys like that. When I was there, we had Tommy Burns, Mr Celtic.

‘Every game, he would tell us how important it was, what it means to the fans. Every single day.

‘When you have that history right in front of you, you know what you are playing for. As people say, if there is no history, there is no future. It’s a big problem for Rangers.

‘I believe that most of the Rangers players don’t really know what it is to play for the club.

‘You can see it. If you have the pleasure to play for a club like Celtic or Rangers, you really need to understand it. If you don’t, you are in big trouble. And I think Rangers are in big trouble.’

The controversy with Miller and Wallace has stirred memories of a flashpoint that scarred Petrov’s first season at Parkhead.

As Celtic plummeted towards their infamous Scottish Cup defeat from Inverness Caledonian Thistle in February 2000, striker Mark Viduka became embroiled in a furious half-time row with assistant manager Eric Black.

Viduka stripped off his jersey, threw his boots away and refused to go out for the second period. Celtic went on to lose 3-1 and manager John Barnes was sacked a few days later.

‘It is terrible when it gets to this stage and it’s hard to control,’ admitted Petrov.

‘It’s a delicate situation. As a player and a human being, you say things that you might sometimes feel sorry about.

‘John Barnes didn’t recover from it and, if you want to be a good manager, you need to be able to do it. ‘These days, it’s not about what session you put on, it’s how you control and lead your team. If you have a team who can play for you and trust you, you are almost there.’

Petrov encountered precisely that kind of leadership when Martin O’Neill was appointed ahead of his second season with Celtic. ‘The manager’s role is very important,’ added Petrov. ‘When I played, we had strong characters. We had guys who didn’t like to lose.

‘The manager didn’t have to motivate us or tell us what we were doing wrong. We knew.

‘But we also had a manager who could control us and tell us when we were doing well or how to put something right.

‘If you had a bad result every 30 games, that was fine. You had to accept it, but work out how you were going to bounce back.

‘We are talking about a manager, but as for Kenny (Miller), you need someone to go and tell people the truth, tell them what it’s all about. ‘Do you know what? Some managers don’t like that these days.’

l Stiliyan Petrov was speaking at the John Hartson Foundation annual golf day at Trump Turnberry. This event was for the Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity. The Hartson Foundation aims to raise £1million by 2020.