Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
SAME AGAIN URGES GERS GAFFER GIO
Dundee v Rangers noon
RANGERS manager Giovanni Van Bronckhorst called on his players to show “desire and determination” again at Dens Park.
Gers won 3-0 at Dundee last Sunday in the Scottish Cup quarter-finals and return to face the cinch Premiership’s bottom club on league duty seven days later.
Mark McGhee will be in the dugout for Dundee for the first time following a touchline ban and bout of Covid-19 but Van Bronckhorst (below) saw few surprises in last week’s cup tie.
“We had already played them at Ibrox when I came in December and we saw them playing as we expected,” he said. “They played quite defensively and tried to punish us on the break.
“We had a very solid performance last week and deserved to go through in the cup.
“On Sunday we have to have the same from minute one – just the desire and determination to get the result.”
Rangers won through to the quarter-finals of the Europa League on Thursday by completing a 4-2 aggregate win over Red Star Belgrade and their potential route to the final in Seville was mapped out in Friday’s draw, which paired them with Braga in the last eight.
Van Bronckhorst’s task is to get his players focused for the title race as Rangers chase leaders Celtic.
“We switch now to the domestic league and we need three points,” the Dutchman said. “That’s the only task for Sunday.”
Dundee have not won any of McGhee’s six games in charge as they risk getting cut adrift at the bottom.
“The most important thing in terms of us getting a result on Sunday is what the team do on the pitch,” he said. “If I can influence them before the game or from the dugout, then that will help, but it’s really about the team performing.
“We know they can do better than they did against Rangers last Sunday in the Scottish Cup and also in the second half against St Mirren.
“They’ve got to show the level of performance that we saw against Motherwell away in a 1-1 draw if they’re going to have any chance of getting anything against Rangers.”