GERRARD NEEDS A QUICK FIX
Slow starts and cheap goals are beginning to plague Rangers but Ibrox boss vows to put it right
RANGERS became champions by keeping their opponents at arm’s length with ruthless authority, but have since developed a tendency to instead offer them a helping hand.
Steven Gerrard has recognised the issue and expressed confidence he can fix it. The weeks ahead will show the result of necessary work on the training ground as the Ibrox boss admitted his side must stop gifting their rivals a head start.
Somewhat remarkably given their past defensive strength, Wednesday night’s 2-2 draw with Aberdeen was the eighth time in 20 matches across all competitions this season that Rangers have conceded the opening goal.
At times, they have recovered fully to ensure no damage was done. Last Sunday’s visit to St Mirren would be one example there, yet the unwelcome trait is clearly making it harder to attain consistency in their title defence.
Against Aberdeen, the deficit created was simply too big to transform into victory. In truth, Rangers’ first concession was a mess.
The Pittodrie side had players pressing high, yet goalkeeper Jon McLaughlin touched the ball short to Connor Goldson. That seemed risky enough, but the centre-back’s pass to John Lundstram was asking for trouble. Ryan Hedges robbed Lundstram and a quick Aberdeen exchange led to Christian Ramirez heading into an exposed net.
Gerrard’s side were two down on 16 minutes. James Tavernier let Scott Brown run off him at a corner and the ex-Celtic captain thumped home a diving header.
It was never realistic to expect Rangers to match last term’s exceptional record of just 13 goals conceded in 38 league games, but they have now conceded ten times in 11 games in the current campaign. That’s more than Celtic, Hearts or Dundee United.
Gerrard also sees a need for a greater spark further up the pitch — with his side less potent than before — yet was clear about the immediate priority when asked about the number of games they have been left chasing.
‘I think you are alluding to what I am talking about fixing,’ he said. ‘We will always be honest here.
‘It is not about criticising anyone or digging anyone out.
‘It is about me as a manager and us a staff looking at a few things and trying to fix a few things that we need to get better at moving forward.
‘Because this is a tough level of football and if you go gifting teams goals… which us unlike us, but it is happening too many times this season.
‘We actually tried to start on the front foot (against Aberdeen). I thought we were positive in the opening exchanges, but then — from a dead ball — we decide to over-play in the wrong area and we don’t do it right.
‘We gifted Aberdeen the opening goal. Then minutes later, you end up 2-0 down from a set-play. You have got to defend your box better when it comes to set plays.
‘From that moment, I don’t think we did much wrong in the game. Okay, we had to force it at times and we had to change the shape and do things and throw more attacking players at it.
‘But that was because we didn’t start the game well enough in terms of making it too easy for Aberdeen to score against us. The challenge became a lot more complicated after ten, 12 minutes.’
Rangers won every home league match last season, but that dominance has been undermined ever since Motherwell became the first team in 18 months to take a point at Ibrox.
The draw against Aberdeen followed a similar outcome against Hearts 11 days previously. Having been six points ahead of Celtic after seven games, Rangers now find their lead cut to two points.
‘I think you have heard this record on a couple of occasions,’ said Gerrard (left). ‘This is the third game we have drawn.
‘There was a lot of that we didn’t recognise as a staff and we need to fix a few things moving forward.’
The Ibrox manager is adamant he doesn’t see a lack of confidence as being among the issues.
‘I don’t think so,’ he continued. ‘I think it is about us getting on the training pitch and working to try and fix the issues that we’ve got.
‘I don’t think there is any denying that how we have started the season, drawing three games at home from a league point of view, certain things need addressing and looking at and that is what we need to do.
‘But that is something that excites me more than concerns me because I believe we can fix them, I believe we can improve and become a lot harder to play against.’
Rangers had scored 26 goals after 11 Premiership games last term. That total has dropped to 19 this time round.
An Alfredo Morelos header from a free-kick and a Tavernier penalty salvaged a draw against Aberdeen but, without the injured Ryan Kent, there can be a lack of dynamism about their forward play.
‘With all the issues we need to fix, I’m not sure concern is the right word,’ said Gerrard. ‘I know what we need to fix.
‘It did look as though we could cause major problems from setpieces, but that’s not enough. We need to be better in open play, in getting shots off. Players on the pitch need to be more creative.’