Rangers must let their play do the talking and stay clear of the hype

STUART McCALL has heard the optimistic noises from Rangers. The predictions of a bona fide title race after Sunday’s clash with Celtic. The cheers from the Ibrox dressing room after the Scottish Cup draw.

Yet years of experience in a flammable environment taught the Ibrox Nine-in-a-Row legend this much. Verbal hand grenades have a nasty habit of blowing up in a team’s face.

Interim manager before Mark Warburton’s appointment, McCall failed to secure the kind of rapid improvement delivered by Graeme Murty. A run of results which could propel Rangers to within three points of their bitter city rivals if they win this weekend.

Were he still in charge, however, McCall would be having a quiet word with his players. Reminding them of the days in the 1990s, when the shoe was on the other foot and Celtic suffered a series of false dawns. Warning them all that loose lips sink ships.

‘There is no doubt Rangers will take encouragement from their last couple of performances against Celtic,’ said the 53-year-old, who left his role as Bradford City boss last month.

‘They also have a stronger squad now than when they last played them in December. But my advice to them would be to play the game and keep their mouths shut.

‘There are still a few younger guys in there just getting to know what it’s all about. They won’t have played in this type of game before.

‘So my advice to them would be: “Let your football do the talking. Don’t get caught up in hype”.

‘I know they have to do interviews. But put the senior men forward and don’t set yourself up for a fall.’

Impressed by the recruitment overseen by director of football Mark Allen in January, McCall believes Rangers have every chance of winning their first league game against Celtic since 2012. Whether they have the quality to win the title against a team accustomed to gunning down domestic opponents is the question.

McCall has witnessed Old Firm debutants frozen solid by the occasion and the fickle nature of football has made him naturally wary of brash words and gestures.

‘Until they are actually there, you just don’t know,’ he said. ‘More so with the foreign lads. Because you don’t know if they are going to grasp it.

‘They would all have been in Nando’s when they beat Aberdeen twice, then, when you lose to Hamilton, you don’t go out for a week.

‘It is the expectation of people. You need to have the right characters in there who can deal with that.

‘They can only carry on what they are doing. But football can change so quickly. Expectation levels have to be kept down, but they are progressing the right way and the squad is strong.’

McCall served as interim manager at Ibrox between March and May 2015. His tenure was wrecked by a play-off defeat to Motherwell which consigned Rangers to another season in the Championship.

But he never managed the club in an Old Firm game and nor did he have a transfer window to secure his own players. By his own admission, he would have loved the resources granted to Murty in January.

‘If I could have been able to bring in Jamie Murphy, I would have been able to beat Celtic,’ he joked.

‘My situation was totally different because Graeme got a chance to bring in not just good players, but good people as well. Good types.

‘That helps the dressing room. Then you have the experience of Kenny Miller and Lee Wallace, even though they are not involved at the moment.

‘They were the go-to men. Now you have experience in Russell Martin and Murphy, who have played at a good level down in England.

‘I was just honoured to do the job. It didn’t matter to me. But that is a key element — being able to bring in the people you want.’

For Rangers, as a club, Sunday’s game is a gauge of progress.

For Murty, as a manager, its importance can hardly be overstated.

Unbeaten in two games against Celtic, the case for the former Scotland defender claiming the job on a permanent basis will be hard to resist if he wins on Sunday.

Fail and the progress made will leave something for a potential new manager to work with.

Yet McCall believes the next permanent Ibrox boss needs the promise of serious investment to overtake Celtic on a consistent basis.

‘If we are talking top managers looking at Rangers, they would want a budget which allowed them to come and have a go at Celtic,’ he added.

‘You play in front of 50,000 and the passion is second to none. Is that job appealing? Yes. But it also has to be appealing off the park.

‘It’s not enough to say Rangers finished within five or six points of Celtic. They will ask: “Now what are we going to do about that? Have we got investment? Can we really put in a proper challenge to Celtic?”

‘If they back up the January window with a budget to make the next window as fruitful — I know there were a few loans — then it’s a stepping stone.

‘And it looks more encouraging than it has for some time. They signed Greg Docherty for £600,000. Murphy will come for £1million.

‘We are not talking money that’s going to topple Celtic at this moment. But you are getting a core that gives you a chance.

‘It should be a job which appeals to top managers. But, listen, Graeme can only keep doing what he is doing.

‘The results and performances have been much improved against Celtic. Long may that continue.’