WE HALF A LOT TO DO
FROM BACK PAGE and Alfredo Morelos strikes inside half an hour.
But Gerrard criticised his players for taking their foot off the gas as he admitted only a strike in the final minute from sub Jermain Defoe helped put a smile back on his face.
Gers are now unbeaten in nine and moved eight points clear in second after Aberdeen’s loss to Accies.
But Gerrard, whose side head to Pittodrie on Sunday for a Scottish Cup quarter-final, said: “We got sloppy, we kept giving the ball away, kept making mistakes all over the pitch and the second half wasn’t enjoyable for me.
“I don’t think we really entertained the fans in the second half.
“I’m really pleased with the first 45 minutes, slightly disappointed with the second half but thankfully Jermain made me feel a little bit better.
“It’s frustrating because top teams have standards they never really let slip – or not very often. I’m pleased in general but it’s just a bit frustrating. The second half was a bit flat and I want my team to entertain and keep the standards up.
“You have to keep pushing, sustaining attacks and play the game in one half. We let Dundee in on goal because we were sloppy and completely came off the gas.
“I’ve said to the players that against better teams and in tougher matches they will be punished for that. If you compare the first half to the second it’s completely different.
“We were outstanding for certainly half an hour but very good for the first 45. In the second half I didn’t really recognise us.
“I made changes to protect certain people because we have a huge game at the weekend but there were still good players going on to replace them.
“We got the job done early but then in the second half we completely dropped our standards and didn’t look like Rangers individually or collectively.
“It’s a good win and another clean sheet. We did the job in the first 25 to 30 minutes when we were excellent, playing with intensity and hunting the ball down, playing with a lot of energy and quality.”
Gers face a huge trip and an impressive Scott Arfield went off at half-time. But on the change Gerrard said: “It was just a precaution.
“He’s had a bit of a tight calf for the last couple of weeks so once we were comfortable we wanted to protect Scott.”
Gerrard was seen talking to Ryan Jack and Kamara after the rest of the players left the pitch at full-time.
And he said: “It was just a bit of coaching and advice for those two. They are in the middle of the pitch, they are the two conductors and should be controlling the rhythm of the game – when to make it fast, when to make it slow.
“If they want to become top leaders and keep improving they should be going for people in the second half because you can’t let that amount of people in your team let their standards drop.
“Glen and Ryan’s standards didn’t drop, they were probably the only two, so the advice is when they smell that in future go for a few people and rattle some cages because it’s not acceptable.”
Dundee dropped back into the relegation playoff spot with Hamilton’s win in the Granite City.
Boss Jim McIntyre said: “You need to come here and be compact but to give away a goal in the third minute from a freekick was just schoolboy.
“After that Rangers’ movement was sensational – they fed off our mistakes.”