MILLER MAGIC
But even heroic double won’t seal new deal
PEDRO CAIXINHA last night insisted that Kenny Miller’s contract situation remains unresolved, despite the veteran’s clinical double at Pittodrie closing the gap on Aberdeen to nine points.
Out of contract in the summer, the 37-year-old reminded the Portuguese of his striking prowess by scoring twice before Joe Dodoo wrapped up an emphatic victory for the Ibrox men.
But Caixinha, who had keeper Wes Foderingham to thank for keeping his side in the contest, later insisted any decision on a new deal for Miller
would not be made on the strength of one afternoon. ‘Maybe I’m going to make a new contract extension to Wes for making a brilliant save when the game was 0-0,’ he replied to an inquiry about Miller’s situation. ‘It is football, it is about the team and we showed today we were a team. We were facing a strong side and it’s important we have players who can decide games at both ends. It’s always important. But one thing doesn’t lead to the other. ‘I am making my assessment and I will tell you when I think is the right time to tell you, whether Kenny is going to continue or not. First of all, he is the one who needs to know from me — not you.’ Caixinha, who confirmed that Jonatan Johansson will be his new No 3, praised his players for showing resilience as Aberdeen hunted down the win that would have put second place beyond his side. ‘Normally the game just ends when it ends,’ he said after a late three-goal burst in four minutes. ‘But we showed a lot of organisation and sacrifice. ‘I think the team understood perfectly the opponent we were facing. What we should have done in all moments of the game, we did. ‘And when the team needed to suffer, the team knows how to suffer. Especially in
the first 15 to 20 minutes of the second half when they (Aberdeen) went for it. ‘We needed to take good decisions in those moments. They were exposing the two full-backs and maybe we recognised it was time for us to expose the space they were leaving at the back. ‘Sometimes, things happen and other times not. I’m glad today they did and the game finished how it did.’ Rangers still face an uphill task to wrestle second spot from the Dons, with Caixinha warning there remains no margin for error. ‘Our focus is always on the next match and I’ll now have the time to look at our next opponent (Partick Thistle) and prepare,’ he said. ‘We still have a lot of work in front of us. It’s always better to build when you have wins behind you. ‘But we’re not going to reduce the pace of the demand. We’re not going to reduce the passion of winning.’ Caixinha was forced to defend Joe Garner after the striker, already on a yellow card after reacting theatrically to a confrontation with Ryan Jack, caught Dons keeper Joe Lewis in the first half. ‘I’m not a referee,’ he stated. ‘I’m not going to discuss this incident. ‘I’ve got one player (Danny Wilson) with a broken nose in my dressing room and I’m not telling you anything about it. ‘I didn’t see the action but I saw the nose. It should have been a violent situation to end up with a nose like that. These things can happen in football with no intention.’ Wilson, whose nose was damaged in a clash with Adam Rooney, later made light of the matter, saying: ‘I feel much better now we’ve won the game. ‘You can put up with the pain after a victory like that. ‘It was important to come here and get three points. We’re still nine points behind them, so I’d rather be in their position. But we had to come here and win. We did, so now we can look forward to the upcoming games. ‘I think it was just one of these incidents when a striker and a defender come together. I came off worse in this one.’