The Rangers players are hurting and Steven Smith reckons they should be after dropping points again
Rangers fans walk out after their draw with Dundee United(Image: Stuart Wallace/Shutterstock)
Steven Smith admits he’s in the dark over who will be in charge of Rangers’ Euro crunch against Brann Bergen on Thursday.
But after watching the Ibrox side fail to win again in the 2-2 draw with Dundee United, the caretaker told his players it shouldn’t MATTER who is in the dug out – as they all need to be leaders.
With negotiations continuing over a deal to bring in Kevin Muscat, U19 coach Smith oversaw another dismal result that means Rangers have won only one of eight league games so far – a run that saw Russell Martin axed a fortnight ago.
But with just days until the trip to Norway which could be pivotal to the Ibrox side’s chances of progressing the caretaker admits he doesn’t know if he will still be in charge.
Neil McCann could be drafted in as an experienced interim with Muscat potentially not making the move from Shanghai Port until the Chinese season ends on November 22.
Asked if he had been told if he will be boss in Bergen, Smith said: “Honestly, I’ve gone day by day. I have not thought any further ahead than Dundee United because that would have been disrespectful.
“If my focus was on other things, whether that was manager noise or thinking about a potential game on Thursday night, that would have been disrespectful to Dundee United.
“As it stands now, I plan to take training tomorrow.
“My attention was always to have a full focus on Dundee United and that should be the players’ intention as well.
“It shouldn’t matter, and I understand the question, it shouldn’t matter who the manager is. And that might sound like an easy thing to say, like the textbook answer. But as a group of players, we need to be leaders of men and we need to stick together and find a way to turn the results, no matter who’s standing in the dugout.”
(Image: SNS Group)
Rangers flew out the traps and could have been well ahead by half-time but only had a solitary Thelo Aasgaard strike to show for their efforts.
And old habits came back to bite as they wilted under the pressure in the second period to fall 2-1 behind before James Tavernier rescued a point with an 87th minute strike.
Smith said: “Of course they players are hurting. And they should hurt, because if you don’t win here, that’s the feeling that you have to have.
“When you look at the first half, there are positives there. I think there were good individual performances, but the game does not last 45 minutes.
“So any potential new manager that’s watching knows there is talent in the group. But it’s just about how you get that consistency over a 90-minute game. And then the results will start to change.
“People might say that’s very optimistic and I understand why. But I’ve seen enough in the first half performance and enough in the training days I’ve had that there are good players there and it can turn quickly.
But time’s running out, it has to be now. And I thought that would have been today after the first half. I felt like at that point this could be it, but it wasn’t to be.
“When you’ve only worked with a group of four, I think four or five training sessions, it’s quite difficult. But it’s not my job to go in at the end of the game and rant and rave at this moment and dig people out and shout. I can only give them a bit of advice from the tough moments that I’ve had here.”
Rangers fans unfurled a banner telling the players there were no more hiding places during the first half.
And asked if the side was lacking leaders, Smith said: “There are people in there that lead the group and drive the group. But you can’t just lead the group and drive the group on matchdays. It has to be every day.
“To be successful here, the standards need to be there every single time you come to the training centre, every single time you go on a training pitch.
“And then, as I mentioned in those tough moments, that’s when you see a team.”