STEVIE GIVES GERS FANS REASONS TO CHEER
Ibrox boss will hammer home his message that Light Blues must focus on the next game in title race run-in
YOU will have heard all the cliches about no trophies being given out in December, how it is a marathon and not a sprint and how you take it one game at a time.
But that is exactly the situation for Rangers following their win over Celtic at the weekend. Those phrases may be well-used, but they are the kind of messages Steven Gerrard will be delivering to his players over the next few days and weeks.
You are obviously going to take a lot of belief and confidence from a day like Saturday after beating your biggest rivals and the team that have won the last seven titles. But Rangers have to build on that now and Steven won’t allow anyone at the club to think that the job is done. You can’t get ahead of yourself at Rangers.
Saturday was a brilliant day for everyone – the supporters, the board, the players and the staff associated with Rangers. But nobody will be getting ahead of themselves.
Teams that win league titles have the kind of mentality that Rangers proved they have against Celtic. But they also have a consistency that Rangers haven’t had just yet.
The performance at Ibrox was of such a high level and was so, so impressive. Now they need to get as close to that as they can week after
week.
If they do that, there are not many teams that will be able to live with them and I would hope that the players realise now just what they are capable of individually and collectively.
They can challenge for the title but there is still plenty of hard work to do and that will have started already as Steven and the staff look to build some real momentum after the winter break. He doesn’t strike me as the kind of guy that will get caught up in a big win and get a bit carried away. He will be focused on the job in hand and determined to pick up where they left off when they return to league and cup action this month.
The Scottish Cup is still up for grabs as well this season but it is the
Premiership that is the main priority and the most important one for Rangers. Steven will be itching to get a bit of silverware in his first season as a manager.
The momentum and confidence that Rangers will take from the performance and the result is huge and it will mean a lot to the players that have really suffered in the Old Firm fixtures over the last couple of years.
When Brendan Rodgers first came into Celtic, he didn’t sign that many players but he got a reaction out of the whole squad.
You saw the change in some of the players he inherited and Steven has had the same impact at Rangers. Look at the likes of Andy Halliday and James Tavernier and what they achieved on Saturday compared to some of their previous matches with Celtic. There has been a change, a shift, in mindset at Rangers this season.
Utility players don’t get mentioned enough and they can get overlooked easily. I know, I was one myself!
Andy can play different positions in the middle of the park, he can play left midfield, he can play leftback and he is one of these players that can sometimes be a bit part throughout a season. But he is always there for the manager, always there when called upon, and the confidence he has taken from Gerrard, as opposed to the last couple of managers, is plain to see.
He was taken off in the cup-semi, was laughed at and took a lot of stick. On Saturday, you could see the change in him thanks to the belief Gerrard has in him and you could see what that result meant to him.
The scenes at full-time on Saturday will live with the Rangers supporters for a long time and I am sure the manager and the players will cherish them as well.
It was great for the fans to get a bit of the bragging rights back and the place was bouncing. The European games have brought that atmosphere back and the Old Firm was even better.
The fans will have a bit of belief now. They have been through it all over the last couple of years and been through thick and thin in the Third Division, League One and Championship.
Life in the Premiership has been really difficult as well but they have sold out Ibrox and sold out on the road week after week to follow their team.
It has been too long since they had a day like that. When it did come, what a way and what a manner to do it in.
There is a bit of hope there for the supporters now but Steven won’t be getting carried away by where Rangers are in the Premiership.
He was right to say the win over Celtic was all about the support and kind of dedicate it to them. Hopefully they have plenty more to sing about in the second half of the season.
He doesn’t strike me as the kind of guy to get caught up in a big win