Union Jack 1872
Well-Known Member
Leave your best striker on the bench who’s been on fire that was a massive mistake nearly as much as shoehorning a CM in as a winger .
Gerrard needs to take a long look in the mirror
- Thread starter DEJA BLUE
- Start date
Leave your best striker on the bench who’s been on fire that was a massive mistake nearly as much as shoehorning a CM in as a winger .
Build my gallows
Well-Known Member
Setting out to contain them at Ibrox rather than go for their throats is unbelievable tactics.
wsb&warmy
Well-Known Member
Correct on all fronts.
cold
Well-Known Member
It was a mistake and the line up was surprising. I thought we would've attack their full backs more.
I do think it's unfair to say he is not learning though.
The Lone Sniper
Well-Known Member
Nonsense - had we lost twice to them at Ibrox last season, you'd be citing those as key games too.
His over-achievement in Europe is paying the bills.
It was always going to come if we slipped up in any game. We've been playing non stop for two months and we have started the season well. Yesterday was a massive disappointment and Gerrard does need to review his tactics for the next time we meet them, but some Bears need to get things into a wee bit more perspective.
Square and compass
Well-Known Member
I think we seen a lot yesterday to determine where we will be.
Very similar to last year imo so far.
I know, I've said so repeatedly. From no seeding and 1st round to qualify TWICE is helping the finances beyond anything expected.
Square and compass
Well-Known Member
Non stop for 8 weeks, big squad and some were warm up games in theory such as the europa.
Where will be at the 24 week mark in winter.
A lot will need to dig very deep.
macjohn212
Well-Known Member
Away ootside and have a word wae yer sel
Square and compass
Well-Known Member
Thats great, but it was against in theory one good polish team.
The first two rounds are warm ups.
Square and compass
Well-Known Member
I would like more input from Mcallister, i thought that before yesterday.
Has a laugh and joke out on the pitch before the game, then sits in the dug out for the full game.
Has a laugh and joke out on the pitch before the game, then sits in the dug out for the full game.
Last season Maribor were seeded higher than us, and this season Legia were too. Not insignificant.
Good point but hopefully that'a when the size of the squad will be advantageous for us. My one crib with Gerrard this season (other than his starting team selection yesterday) is sending Ross McCrorie on loan to Portsmouth. No way should he have done that.
Cooperfan
Well-Known Member
The forward line was completely wrong yesterday. So was the players attitude. The latter is the worrying one without the desire to match and exceed theirs..
Defoe had no support, Arfield is knackered and playing within himself, and Aribo just went missing which is concerning. Add in a formation with no width except that of your FBs and you wonder how Flanagan fits in, someone who offers nothing to the attack. We dropped our top player to the bench, are we really that confident we're better than them? Rotation is not an option against them.
Defoe had no support, Arfield is knackered and playing within himself, and Aribo just went missing which is concerning. Add in a formation with no width except that of your FBs and you wonder how Flanagan fits in, someone who offers nothing to the attack. We dropped our top player to the bench, are we really that confident we're better than them? Rotation is not an option against them.
Theresa May
Well-Known Member
Nothing like an Old Firm defeat to set the hares running with drama queen nonsense.
Only a matter of hours ago, we were lauding Gerrard on his improvement as a manager and his increased maturity levels having had one year in the job - fast forward 24 hours and Gerrard is a dud ego maniac, living off his reputation as a player.
Absolute basket cases on here at times. We're all frustrated after yesterday, but throwing your toys out of the pram with threads like this is nothing short of embarrasing - away and have a pint or think about something else for an hour.
Only a matter of hours ago, we were lauding Gerrard on his improvement as a manager and his increased maturity levels having had one year in the job - fast forward 24 hours and Gerrard is a dud ego maniac, living off his reputation as a player.
Absolute basket cases on here at times. We're all frustrated after yesterday, but throwing your toys out of the pram with threads like this is nothing short of embarrasing - away and have a pint or think about something else for an hour.
Mate if he wins the league cup and pushes Celtic all the way in the league, it's not what I want but realistic it wouldn't be that bad, if he can then push on the following season.
Cooperfan
Well-Known Member
Sadly that rings true. It's not an over reaction to yesterday either. I've been asking the question regarding so called quality signings for a while. The.hope is that the additions of Davis and Defoe in January make us stronger (they weren't here at the beginning of last season) as we have boosted the squad in this the window but not the first eleven. Is a stronger squad but a similar first eleven (minus Kent) going to be enough?
Are you saying he should be sacked if he doesn't win the league this year?
Square and compass
Well-Known Member
Could have made a diference yesterday, thats for sure.
My crib is LB, either play one or other.
For years it was stuart munros then davy roberstsons.
The back four and goalie should always pick themselves.
I think he tinkers with it too much.
Gerrard has got more right than wrong.
He's held his hands up already and knows he screwd up.
I'm still very surprised he set up that way and also how poorly some players performed.
It is right be be angry about yesterday as it wasn't acceptable in any way.
I still trust the manager but maybe we aren't quite as good as I thought or it was just a bad day but one we could ill afford.
He's held his hands up already and knows he screwd up.
I'm still very surprised he set up that way and also how poorly some players performed.
It is right be be angry about yesterday as it wasn't acceptable in any way.
I still trust the manager but maybe we aren't quite as good as I thought or it was just a bad day but one we could ill afford.
The Huguenot
Well-Known Member
SG is a new manager and not infallable (unlike the leader of a particular religious organisation). The last year has shown that he will learn from mistakes in order to improve the team. A certain city wasn't built in a day and the reality is we don't have the money to buy the 1 or 2 quality players to make a real difference. We are a work in progress but we are heading in the right direction. No pain, no gain.
no way is this true - away in Denmark, first half in Poland and 2nd half at Ibrox last Thursday were really good performaces, IMO up a level on last season. Hibs at home 6-1.
we've gone away to Kille and St.Mirren - 2 awful teams who park the bus, one awful pitch, and dug out wins while not playing well.
lost to them.
central midfield (Jack and Davis esp) have been much better than last season. Central defence better than last season with more depth from the bench.
Alfie IMO is better than last season, Defoe has been decent. Arfield, Ojo, Jones and Aribo have looked the part in spells, but there is more to come from them as the season goes on.
Commentator
Well-Known Member
The underlying reason we lost yesterday was there before the manager arrived.
bougherraswink
New Member
So what’s the reason?
Tomted
Well-Known Member
After all we have been through in recent years, would have thought that we might have got better at handling adversity and setbacks. Yes, yesterday was a huge disappointment and our manager contributed to the disappointment. If the “we need to win the league this season “ expectation dominates our thinking, it is likely that there could be another disappointment ahead of us. Celtic, may be no great shakes but they began the season with a stronger squad, than we have and have the available resources, to improve it. Just a few days ago, SG was being highly acclaimed, here on FF and now some seem to think that he isn’t up to it. The truth probably lies somewhere in between. It may be more realistic to wait until the turn of the year, before passing judgment.
got it wrong big time
a game which we were fave to win
sorry SG got it badly wrong and look........
Mabearette
Well-Known Member
Last time we wanted it more than them this time they were more up for it and for some reason we were in canny be bothered mode. Best just to put it behind us.
Bingo ! SG's decision to disrupt our normal set up was wrong.
Let's hope he's learned to play to OUR strengths and trust the players to deliver.
Southsideblueblood
Well-Known Member
If I was a handsome bastard like him, I’d spend plenty of time looking in the mirror.
Sebo1872
Well-Known Member
I'm not really getting on the gaffers back but to say he's only got one game wrong in his tenure is disingenuous.
baystatebear
Well-Known Member
Here is the problem as I see it. In the latter half of last season, we defeated celtic twice, not by luck or through freak circumstances, but because on the day we were the better side. The Rangers management team spent the summer acquiring a large number of new players, whom we not unreasonably supposed, would significantly strengthen the squad both in terms of depth and quality.
Sunday's debacle then begs the question, what went wrong. Did celtic's activity in the transfer window improve them so much that on Sunday we were faced with a vastly stronger team than we played against last year - I don't think so. Since Gerrard was able to field his first strength squad, with no injury concerns, why then did things go so drastically wrong?
We are left with the conclusion that either, a) too many of the new Rangers additions buckled under the pressure of an OF fixture, or weren't as good as we had been lead to believe, b) individual errors by players that can't be legislated for, c) tactical mistakes in the Rangers game-plan, or d) conversely, a tactical masterclass by TLB that completely nullified the plans of his opposite number. Whatever is the case it needs to get sorted out. Certainly, if we drop any more points by drawing (or losing) games between now and the next game at their place, the league race could be over by the new year.
Sunday's debacle then begs the question, what went wrong. Did celtic's activity in the transfer window improve them so much that on Sunday we were faced with a vastly stronger team than we played against last year - I don't think so. Since Gerrard was able to field his first strength squad, with no injury concerns, why then did things go so drastically wrong?
We are left with the conclusion that either, a) too many of the new Rangers additions buckled under the pressure of an OF fixture, or weren't as good as we had been lead to believe, b) individual errors by players that can't be legislated for, c) tactical mistakes in the Rangers game-plan, or d) conversely, a tactical masterclass by TLB that completely nullified the plans of his opposite number. Whatever is the case it needs to get sorted out. Certainly, if we drop any more points by drawing (or losing) games between now and the next game at their place, the league race could be over by the new year.
steniebear
Well-Known Member
My concern is that we didnt need a raft of new players. We needed to basically keep what we had and add 3 quality starters.
ScottXC
Well-Known Member
I remember in the Pedro / Murty days that it was hard to find times when we had won 3 games in a row in all competitions.
What an absolute disaster of an OP.
Forgot what a normal time win felt against them and Gerrard delivered two FANTASTIC home wins against them in his FIRST season. We have 3 games against them to go.
Better managers have lost to the mentally challengeds. The notion that it is a sackable offence is just madness.
What an absolute disaster of an OP.
Forgot what a normal time win felt against them and Gerrard delivered two FANTASTIC home wins against them in his FIRST season. We have 3 games against them to go.
Better managers have lost to the mentally challengeds. The notion that it is a sackable offence is just madness.
douzpwa
Well-Known Member
Had the players played to recent standard imho his tactics may well have been spot on unfortunately many of our players had an off day slow to the tackle, wayward passes and giving ball away cheaply! We caused the main goal for that we would not have lost the second chasing the first!
Did we qualify for the Europa groups on Thursday or did I dream that?
Antsy
Well-Known Member
Is it just a modern thing where people are completely unable to deal with a loss? Every player, manager, and team we've every had or will have played badly at some point, even against celtic. It's not Gerrard that needs to take a long look in the mirror. Folk need to calm down.
Glasgow Rangers (Sco)
Well-Known Member
Neil Lennon managed a few victories over Walter Smith, did he need to look in the mirror despite being in coaching for 30 plus years??
Glasgow Rangers (Sco)
Well-Known Member
I thought Alfredo was pretty poor against Legia until the last 15mins.
Defoe didn’t do anything to warrant being dropped in the first place
You can’t keep big named players happy on the bench every week
douzpwa
Well-Known Member
Or too many players were under performing therefore unable to follow instructions properly?
Shepchenko83
Active Member
My biggest amazement to this whole thing is that 3 fellow bears liked your post
bigduds58
Well-Known Member
Some of our fans are very ungrateful,we have one of the best young managers in the game he has brought with him
with top top guys who are rated as the top in the business,he has us playing with style and fitness levels are the best I've seen at Rangers and that's from someone who has watched Rangers for 50 yrs,yes he MIGHT have got his team selection wrong and maybe his tactics were wrong,but it's the players who need to step up but cmon it's one game where nothing went right,I do think our game took more out of than thier game,we had to full pelt for 90 on Thursday they didn't,we will kick on from this I have no doubt about that.
with top top guys who are rated as the top in the business,he has us playing with style and fitness levels are the best I've seen at Rangers and that's from someone who has watched Rangers for 50 yrs,yes he MIGHT have got his team selection wrong and maybe his tactics were wrong,but it's the players who need to step up but cmon it's one game where nothing went right,I do think our game took more out of than thier game,we had to full pelt for 90 on Thursday they didn't,we will kick on from this I have no doubt about that.
BluebellsPuertoDelCarmen
Well-Known Member
Tend to agree (although not sure about the next gen. manager thing). Goldson can be an excellent player but he is also prone to lapses in concentration. I honestly don’t know if that’s fixable.
There is not enough width being deployed in the team which is probably why Legia openly described us as “predictable”, albeit we went through in the end.
instructor
Well-Known Member
It's about results really. We weren't very good v Killie and St. Boo but we won, we lose to Celtic and there are doubts over Gerrard. Goldson doesn't make that howler and the game finishes 0-0 and we wouldn't get such negative reaction. I think Gerard did get his team and tactics wrong but it is only one game. He excels in Europe and we all applaud this. Celtic favourties for the title but we can run them close and I hope we get Kent today because he is a player that Celtic fear.
Starting Anew
Well-Known Member
This is nonsense. The team was surprising but, when you saw it, it was obvious what he was trying to do. He was looking to hugely overload them in midfield and rely on being able to play through them with Defoe’s touch and movement interlocking with Arfield and Aribo. It made sense. It was similar to what Celtic used to very successfully do to our 2 midfielders under Pedro. It didn’t work.
In retrospect, why didn’t we run 2 wingers against their weak wing backs? (Because he chose to target their weak centre backs who are poorer on the ground than in the air) Why didn’t we play our best striker from the start? (Because Defoe arguably fit the tactic better and half this board was against starting Alfie for temperament). Why play an unfamiliar variant of our formation? (Because it was not very unfamiliar and Aribo might have been expected to suit it well).
You can say Gerrard should have known the players better and known what would work best. But you can see what he was trying to do and I have to say I thought it was a sound plan before kick off though he’d inevitably face criticism if it failed.
In retrospect, why didn’t we run 2 wingers against their weak wing backs? (Because he chose to target their weak centre backs who are poorer on the ground than in the air) Why didn’t we play our best striker from the start? (Because Defoe arguably fit the tactic better and half this board was against starting Alfie for temperament). Why play an unfamiliar variant of our formation? (Because it was not very unfamiliar and Aribo might have been expected to suit it well).
You can say Gerrard should have known the players better and known what would work best. But you can see what he was trying to do and I have to say I thought it was a sound plan before kick off though he’d inevitably face criticism if it failed.
Valley Bluenose
RTV? Completed it mate!
I was with you until the 'sound plan' bit. I too could see some logic in what he was trying to do. I didn't agree with it but I could understand the reasoning behind it. I thought Aribo, for example, would thrive in a free role behind Defoe. How wrong I was. Nevertheless, however you choose to look at it there can be no doubt it was a gamble. An unnecessary gamble at that. A critical OF game, and this one was certainly towards the upper end of the scale in those terms, was not the time to take such a gamble in my view. Easy to say with hindsight, of course, but we should have stuck with the same formation and tactics we'd used leading into the game - even if we did rotate the personnel a wee bit.
