Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Waghorn happy for holiday cut
RANGERS front man Martyn Waghorn insists he will happily sacrifice an extended summer break if it means getting a taste of European action.
Boss Pedro Caixinha was yesterday forced to insist there is no discord among his squad over plans for pre-season.
Reports have suggested the I b rox m a n ag e r is considering extending his players’ holiday time i n order to head off a brewing row sparked when he originally granted them just nine days of downtime.
It was claimed plans that would see t he players report back on June 1 had caused friction with the likes of skipper Lee Wallace and striker Joe Garner, as they were having to shift wedding arrangements.
But Caixinha says his men — who round off their season away to St Johnstone on May 21 — are on board with his training schedule as they eye up the Europa League qualifiers, which kick off on June 29.
Asked if players had expressed concern over the amount of time off they were getting between campaigns, Caixinha replied: “Not at all. They are hard workers. They are professionals.”
And Waghorn backed his boss’ version of events, insisting he does not mind giving up time off with crucial European clashes just weeks away.
“There has been a l ot made of the time off over the past day or so and, yeah, it is short and it’s not ideal, but it happens and we are back for good reason,” he said.