Daniel expects to win silverware – at least once
Daniel Candeias is adamant he will win at least one trophy with Rangers this season.
The winger experienced the agony of losing cup semi-finals against Motherwell and Celtic at Hampden last season.
Those games came under the management of Pedro Caixinha and then Graeme Murty.
A lot has changed since. Steven Gerrard has arrived and transformed Rangers into a much-more formidable outfit.
Going 11 European games without defeat shows just how hard it has become to beat the Ibrox men.
Candeias is one of the few survivors from the Caixinha era.
He might have been expected to depart with his Portuguese team-mates during the summer, but he stayed to embrace the Gerrard revolution.
There’s no doubt in his mind that Rangers can defeat Aberdeen today and reach the Betfred Cup final.
He said: “I think this year is another story, and I am looking forward to this game.
“This team needs to win trophies. I have a good feeling that I will pick up one trophy for the club this year.
“The manager has changed the mentality. Now there is real disappointment when we don’t win.”
The 30-year-old already has medals from his time in Portuguese football, but winning a trophy with Rangers would mean a lot more to him.
He went on: “I won the league with Porto and the cup, but for me it is more important here.
“When I won the league with Porto, I didn’t play too many games.
“Here I have played a lot and it’s more important to win the trophies for Rangers.
“Now is the moment to do that.” Rangers kicked-off the league season with a 1-1 draw against Aberdeen at Pittodrie, and Candeias sees that game as evidence of why they can dump the Dons.
He said: “The first game with Aberdeen was so, so hard. After 12 minutes Alfredo Morelos was sent off but the job my teammates did on the pitch was fantastic.
“If we can play like we did against Rapid Vienna, and also that 10-man performance at Aberdeen, then in my opinion we will win the game.”