JJ has plenty experience to call on at Ibrox
JONATAN JOHANSSON has vowed to do everything in his power to help ease the pressure on Rangers boss Pedro Caixinha.
The 42-year-old Finn has been appointed as an assistant to the Portuguese.
And while he says an enormous amount has changed since he played for the club, between 1997 and 2000, the expectation on the men who lead the Light Blues remains a constant.
“I was a young man, only 21 years old, when I arrived at Rangers,” he said. “All I knew was football and doing my talking on the pitch.
“Of course, it was nerveracking to walk into the dressing-room in those days, with first of all Walter Smith.
“I had massive respect for the manager and then all the players.
“To become the Rangers boss you have to have something very special, and each of my managers had that.
“The way football has developed, there are many more people involved in training sessions and to follow players from everything from diet and fitness has to be incorporated into the sessions.”
Not everything has changed, however.
“The expectations from the supporters remain the same and the media pressure is actually bigger now,” said Johansson.
“But I have been around here for the last year, so I understand the responsibility and appreciate the pressures which come with this job, and especially the manager’s job at a club like this.
“I know everything that has been going on at the club. I’m a fan as well so I know what the fans demand from the club, the players and everyone on the coaching staff.
“That’s something you learn to handle as a player and continue doing that.
“The main thing is for us to work as hard as we can for the manager and the team so we can get the positive results that are expected of this club.”
The former Finnish national coach will also do his bit to try to mentor the talent on the park.
“I hope I can use my experience of coming here as a young Rangers player to help,” he said.
“It’s very important you focus on your football when you are at a club like Rangers. Focus on the work you do every day because that is what you can affect.
“It’s about trying to tell players that, trying to show by example, concentrate on what your job is and the rest you have to sort of block out.
“Be aware of it maybe. But you can’t let it affect what you do day-to-day in your work or in games.
“You need it from coaches and managers, but also from players.
“I remember Derek McInnes was one of the ones who helped me as he lived close to me and he helped me settle in.
“I was single, and the other foreigners had arrived with their wives at the time. Derek helped me settle into the Scottish culture. Sometimes you need some guidance.”