Pedro planting seeds of success
CAIXINHA DRAWS UP HIS IBROX BATTLE PLANS:
BORROWING a pen from a journalist, Pedro Caixinha flips over a sheet of paper. Drawing a rectangle on the page, the Rangers boss breaks down eight phases of transition. How his team will attack and how they will defend when the other team have the ball.
The process continues for ten minutes or so, with his outlines enthusiastically drawn to show how he is drilling his players for tomorrow’s game against Motherwell.
Through an open door, full-back Lee Hodson awaits his turn to speak to the Press. He has heard much of this before.
Caixinha is also learning things about Scottish football. But the international break was a chance to tutor his players in his expectations and methods.
‘You need to teach them more than coach them,’ he says, jabbing the borrowed pen at the page in front of him.
‘You need to educate them and let them see the game like this. You need to establish priorities if you want them to see a clear picture.
‘We are focused on these moments because it is the majority of what we are going to face — this is going to be our reality.
‘The best players are the most intelligent ones. They are wise about the game, they read the game, they understand the game and they make better decisions.
‘It is about them understanding what is going on and taking decisions, so they need to be aware all the time, making decisions all the time.’
The Rangers boss was granted a full fortnight to impart his ideas to the players. Hodson and Lee Wallace were away on international duty, but the bulk of the squad were treated to what their new manager calls ‘stimulations’ and ‘adaptations.’ English is Caixinha’s second language and he is prone to the use of coaching jargon.
Yet the subtext of what he says can be summed up as follows: Caixinha’s Rangers have to find a way to win.
‘I always say, this is the third time I will say it, my players are all the best ones,’ adds Caixinha.
‘My squad is the best one, my club is the best one. We are Rangers.
‘We need to think like that, we need to act like that, we need to have that mentality. The players have done a fantastic job.
‘If the philosophy of one style of game is different, that means the stimulations you receive to that style of game are different.
‘The stimulations they are getting now are different. Stimulations lead to adaptions, so these stimulations lead to different adaptations.
‘Are they adapted to this? They are getting adapted and they are doing a fantastic job regarding the stimulations they are receiving and the adaptations they are receiving.’
In Mexico and in Qatar, he had more technical players. Footballers with more skill and natural ability. In Scotland, effort and endeavour are valued as highly as craft and skill.
Caixinha believes he can teach players to be more skilful and clever. But he cannot teach passion or commitment. At Rangers, then, he has a foundation to work with.
‘The places I have been working before I arrived here: the Qatari players don’t have some sort of perception but they are very skilful, they can do the things,’ he says. ‘But I believe it is very difficult to transmit this passion to them.
‘Mexican players are very skilful as well, but they don’t have the same level of professionalism. So in all places you have very good points and other points you are weaker on. Strengths and weaknesses.
‘So you just need to balance these things. But if you ask me: “Do you prefer your players to be passionate?”. I totally agree.
‘Because the only thing that isn’t negotiable with us is the attitude. If I have guys that are committed, they are committed to work. It’s easy to lead them in this direction.’
The international break was not all about working with players.
The absence of a relationship between Ibrox chairman Dave King and former manager Mark Warburton contributed to the Englishman’s downfall.
Meeting King for the first time over dinner, Caixinha believes the two men were on the same wavelength.
‘It was really a pleasure to meet Dave. It was really a fantastic dinner… I like Indian food,’ adds the Portuguese. ‘From my time in Mexico, with the spices...
‘It was a very interesting meeting. Things were really, really clear and just after that we started carrying on in the same direction, getting on the same wavelengths and on the same work that needs to be done from now until the beginning of next season.’
My squad is the best one. My club is the best one. We are Rangers