Ibrox coach targets Liverpool win ratio as the benchmark

GARY McALLISTER admits Rangers will need to match the win ratio of his former club Liverpool if they are to wrench the SPFL Premiership title from Celtic.

Prior to being confirmed Premier League champions last month, the Reds had lost just one and drawn two of 31 league fixtures.

Rangers, on the other hand, had lost four and drawn four prior to the league shutting down early in March — double Celtic’s tally in each category.

Assistant McAllister played with manager Steven Gerrard at Liverpool and admits the Anfield side’s relentless form under Jurgen Klopp has set a benchmark.

‘Absolutely, that’s just a given,’ he said. ‘Historically, across the globe, most of the teams that win leagues, that is the sort of level you have to hit. There’s no wiggle room, there’s very little wiggle room there.

‘I worked at Liverpool prior to coming here and watched that group of players for a few years before the additions of Alisson and (Virgil) van Dijk.

‘They are fantastic physically, tactically sound, fantastic flair players but it’s the way they manage games that impresses me.

‘Even games within a game, they can be playing one-touch, beautiful football to the eye, but you can’t boss a game for 90 minutes, not even the very best.

‘So when the game turns, people within that team manage the game extremely well.

‘The likes of James Milner, Jordan Henderson, Van Dijk at the back, experienced players. When those games drift away, they seem to pull the team together whether it becomes scrappy or physical. I would say within the game we can manage games better.’

Liverpool’s Premier League win ended a 30-year wait for the English title. Rangers are out to stop Celtic winning a tenth in a row and McAllister says the Ibrox club’s need is just as pressing.

He added: ‘We’ve got to win. You can break it all down but we will only be judged on winning.

‘I’m sat in a room now where I can see some trophies on the wall. We need to win one of them — or two or three.’