STEVIE: NO LOSS IN IBROX
STEVEN GERRARD claims Rangers ran up their worst home record in more than a century last season because they were mentally weak.
And he insists it won’t happen again on his watch.
Bossed through a disastrous campaign by Pedro Caixinha and Graeme Murty (below), they lost seven league games at Ibrox in a season for the first time since 1915.
They won only 10 of their 19 at home and dropped 25 points.
Now Gerrard wants a return to the days of the Govan stronghold being a feared fortress as they start their Premiership home run against St Mirren this afternoon.
He said: “It’s not good enough for a team like Rangers. You can’t be dropping that amount of points at home.
“I’ve seen it happen at many other clubs. If the team isn’t right and the mentality’s not right or your squad’s not strong enough, it’s possible these things can happen.
“But I think in a lot of the games where Rangers dropped points last season it was down to mentality and approach.
“We’ve made it clear to the players that it’s not acceptable because we’re not good enough where we can become complacent.
“We’re building something here and we need to have the same attitude and intensity.
“If any players in my team think they can waltz into this game and turn up, it won’t happen.”
St Mirren have not won at Ibrox since a Kevin Mcgowne winner in their relegation season 26 years ago.
It’s a record Gerrard wants to keep intact.
He said: “It’s very important that we try to make Ibrox a difficult place to come for visiting teams, try to turn it into a fortress like in the past.
“So the idea for us is to keep growing and try to build confidence.
“We are not good enough to pick and choose when we turn up for our games. We have to be at it in every single game.
“We need to treat St Mirren as we would if it was a Celtic coming to town, an Aberdeen or a Maribor.
“We have to have the same focus and improve our home form.”