Match Thread Rangers v Malmö - 20:00 Tuesday - Premier Sports

universer said:
We had belief, we didn't had as much as Malmo had, also what they had more was hunger to fight on.

Then we got scared, crumbled mentally and reverted to our last season Tav and Barisic crosses to nobody, fingers crossed Morelos can catch it. Play the damn ball, Sakala was there, Hagi and Wright were there, hell even KENT was there !
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And even then those players need to get shots away. Force keeper to make saves, get defenders lunging into tackles, win corners and pile pressure on, maybe a lucky deflection like last week. Just absolutely smother the opposition in pressure.

We're often looking like we want three touches too many and it's really cost us this past week.
 
Healy93 said:
Will take some stick for this but I don't care. James taverneir led us to 55. He can cope with a league set of games. He cannot deal with games under pressure. League cup/Scottish cup/champions League/Europa League. He was the captain when we did 55 but he's absolutely not my rangers captain.
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I feel a bit guilty about it, but I have to agree. He scunnered me more than any other player on the park in that second half.
 
Desperate stuff from Rangers. Very poor defending. This leg was a carbon copy of the first. Malmö are fourteen games into their league and we have played only two. That was a factor but it doesn’t explain our poor defending. Somehow Gerard has to turn this around.
 
BrooklynBlue said:
There was no chance he was being sacked after a last-minute loss to St.Mirren in the cup.

It's the easiest thing to shout 'change'. Given the progress and improvement culminating in last season's success, the management don't deserve to lose their jobs at the beginning of August.

People should show a little faith. However I'm not surprised the knives are already out.
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Agree, he knows he has to change things and he will.
 
Big Negri said:
3 defeats in a row is not good enough for any Rangers team. There are players in that team who think they are superstars and need dropped. And not just in a league cup game v Dunfermline. We have been shocking since we clinched the league. Anybody giving the team/manager pelters tonight has every right to do so.
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TO be honest there has been a fair few performances after the new year that have been pretty poor but we managed to get a result. The number of 1 goal winning performances was crazy. Still more than deserved to win the league but so many games were far to fine a margin for my liking.
 
DAS77Ibrox said:
I

We can accept from 35-45 we flagged a bit. We managed that ok. The second half wasn’t even about coming out the traps. It was be calm, extra man, move them about. But we chose a central partnership that’s not robust and we chose self destruct.

And we are unfit from pre-season, which is brutal.
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I was already troubled by the sloppy passing and chaotic defending towards end of first half, but fair - it was the second half we really threw it away.
 
Azzurri said:
Bit early to call for Gerrard’s head, ffs, two games into the season and yes we lost a tie we all thought we would win tonight, there is definitely something not right at the moment, big changes to come bet you he is as raging as we all are.
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It was more the sentence 'winning the league kept Gerrard in a job'.
 
Healy93 said:
Will take some stick for this but I don't care. James taverneir led us to 55. He can cope with a league set of games. He cannot deal with games under pressure. League cup/Scottish cup/champions League/Europa League. He was the captain when we did 55 but he's absolutely not my rangers captain.
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60 posts in 3 years!
 
Rt. Hon. Bearman said:
One word to describe us tonight.

Meek.

We didn't want it enough. We went 1-0. Still didn't want it. They went down to 10 men. Still didn't want it.

I just can't fathom it at all.

What is wrong with the players?

They should have been playing like men possessed tonight, but it was all so pedestrian.

It was almost like they didn't realise it was a CL qualifier and thought it was just a friendly, where a run out and avoiding injury was the order of the day.

A total wasted opportunity and I'm disgusted with all of them.
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I just don't get why our players weren't willing to run through a brick wall to reach the Champions League. ? Most of them will never have another chance to do so if they continue playing like that in the SPFL this season.
 
Discombob said:
We conceded 2 with Helander in defence, and 2 with Balogan in defence. I'm inclined to blame all of our defenders.
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Goldson was at fault for at least one goal last week. Possibly one tonight too, didn't get chance to see it properly. All our defenders seem to have gone back a level, if not more.
 
Preseason - shambles.
Start of the season - shambles.
Transfer dealings - shambles.
Contract side show - shambles.

That crap was well worth the wait of standing in a queue for an hour because the shitey ticketing system doesn’t work.
 
Coda said:
Just seeing that second goal, 4 players chasing a man into the corner. I don’t think you’d even see something that bad in Sunday League.

Just bonkers.
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Couldn't believe my eyes. The finish itself is hard to fault Balogun or Aribo who are outdone by a very good player.

The throw-in to their number 9 in the middle of the box? Disgusting.
 
The midfield without Jack and Kamara concerns me in Europe.

Patterson needs to come in on Friday.

What is the pecking order of our wingers? Looks like selecting an on-form Kent and the other selection is completely random.
 
Not good enough in either leg. Criminal defending. A midfield that couldn't control the game. Poor service to the strikers. Malmo didnt go through because of freak goals. They went through because over the 2 legs they were better than us. Very little in the first leg but tonight it was really clear.

We started well tonight. The high press was causing them real problems and we deserved to be 1 ahead. Morelos was really good. Kent and Wight were showing in patches. The biggest influence on the early part of the game was Joe Aribo. Malmo genuinely couldn't cope with his pressing and his runs into the box. They looked panicked at the back. Their midfielders didnt have any time on the ball to set things up from in front of their own box because Aribo was on them.

And for some reason we decided to sit back, 35 minutes, 2-2 on aggregate and we decide that we're going to abandon what was working for us. Innocent was unfortunate to see a second yellow but he was stupid to give the ref a decision to make. Rangers might have thought that the sending off would have changed the game, but Malmo didnt sit back and try and hold the 2-2. They were aggressive and actually looked to go forward. We rather bizarrely sat off them and let them have the ball. Their 2 goals in the first leg came from defensive errors. Their 2 goals tonight came from defensive errors. There's a pattern there. We dropped the only defender who emerged from the first leg with any credit and his replacement tonight was involved in both goals. Thats not bad luck on our part. Malmo took advantage of some really sloppy play.

The subs didnt do anything to change the game. We lost any last hope of having shape and structure and nothing we did going forward was going to rescue the tie.

It's early in the season and there's enough time to turn things around. That said, 3 losses in a row isnt good and going out by losing both legs against Malmo is poor. Is the starting 11 good enough? The squad in general? For me the answer has to be no - and worryingly no at that.

The back 4 tonight - none of them played well. Tav and Goldson aren't good defenders and we've got decisions to make with Patterson arguably now deserving a run in the team and Goldson's future needing sorted out. Tav starts because of what he offers going forward, but over the 2 legs he's looked poor and his defensive frailty was shown last week. Barasic doesnt look remotely fit and seems to have regressed. Midfield? I know fans love Steven Davis, but for me he's finished at this level. Absolutely no involvement in tonight's game. Arfield was a waste of a jersey and Aribo disappeared from the game when he dropped deep and we stopped pressing. He's just not a central midfielder. Kamara is a huge miss, but its a worry that our midfield is essentially down to 1 player (and arguably Ryan Jack if he can regain fitness). Kent disappeared when we stopped pressing and he's started the season poorly. Morelos clearly can't do it all on his own up front. The options from the bench - particularly in midfield and up front - weren't game changers. Hagi is still carrying the knock from the first league game. Itten just doesnt seem to be the right fit for us. Sakala needs time but hasn't started particularly well.

Gerrard needs to pick the team up. We now focus on the Europa League and it's not where we want to be playing. We need to improve on our league defeat. Fans will rightly be angry at the way we've gone out of the Champions League and that's going to put pressure on the players. At the same time I don't think Celtic are complete no-hopers. We can laugh at Joe Mangle and the mess Celtic appear to be in but they'll still provide a challenge to us this season and it's a challenge we need to show that we're capable of meeting.

On the basis of the 2 league games and the 2 CL matches, I think our squad needs investment. It's time for Bassey and Patterson to be given a run in the team because neither Barasic nor Tav are playing remotely well enough. They shouldn't be allowed to rely on being guaranteed starters. We also need to address the issue of Goldson. He's not so good that we can't replace him. I thought Ahmedhodzic looked good tonight and was far better than Goldson. I think Helander can be genuinely angry that he was dropped for Baogun. I don't think Davis is capable at the level we want to be playing and Arfield is completely done. Would other realistic targets offer more to our squad? Right now I don't believe that Ali McCann or Lewis Ferguson would offer less than Arfield, and I don't rate either as good enough to be regular starters for Rangers. We've got to be asking questions of Ryan Kent and whether or not he has the mentality to be a big game player at a big game club?

The past week has shown where our flaws are and where we need to improve. The big question now is whether or not Gerrard has learned enough in his managerial career so far to make those improvements and whether or not we can afford to address the weaknesses in our starting 11 and the squad in general? Theres's enough time to find out, but we're kidding ourselves if we don't admit that there are warning signs.
 
We keeping hearing about depth of squad, yes maybe for Scotland. But really other than McGregor who is just about finished and Davis who we ask too much of, what real quality do we have that is proven week in, week out?

A squad full of some who are progressing, some hopefuls who might get there and a number who are starting to look a bit lost and lose confidence too easily.

Realistically we are not looking for a team of superstars, but we don't have the depth of quality that some of us may think we have. We need a core of players with character who are going to hit a certain level consistently and we need to add a bit of real quality. When was the last time we signed a player that we thought they'll definitely bring it, rather than waiting to see if it works out.
 
Tugay1872 said:
I am aware of that. When I use the term 'freak' its to imply that the goals/defeats have came against the run of play. I honestly don't think we were that bad tonight, apart from decision making from the full backs. But im hurting like everyone, really hurting. Just feel sucker punched .
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XabGer said:
How many crosses do we throw into the box and how many do we win.
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Alfie will win his fair share but the reality is the majority of the balls into the box were terrible, the goal and one for goldson header around the hour and the ready were sh*te.
 
SG needs to be positive here and freshen this team up.
Bring in 1-2 youngsters and let them know this is their chance.
We have quality young players chomping at the bit.
 
HoboUK said:
JDT just gave Gerrard a tactical lesson
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No he didn’t. Tomasson has played on the fact we switch off in these games gifting them four goals. Malmö didn’t have a stick on tactic. They had fitness and a guy upfront who could see Goldson and Balogun didn’t have a line or awareness or a partnership.
 
There was a post on here during the summer starting that Defoe had said on a podcast or something that he had spoken to a number of players at the end of last season who were considering whether they should stay or leave on a high. That much is very fucking clear now and needs to be addressed. If they don’t want to be here sell them ASAP and fund their replacements and refresh the squad because looking at that tonight it needs it. For all we talk and moan about Alfie and his reps making noise about moves, he was the one that ran himself into the ground and single handedly tried to drag us through that tonight
 
The same old predictable play from rangers. It's getting easy to play against. Out from the goalie, up the wing to Tav who hits it against a defender. If there are more defenders in the box than attackers then the odds are they will get to the ball first. Why do we insist on playing this way. It worked last season, but every team we've played so far has sussed us out. Time to make changes.
 
monkey magic said:
I just don't get why our players weren't willing to run through a brick wall to reach the Champions League. ? Most of them will never have another chance to do so if they continue playing like that in the SPFL this season.
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I don’t know. It’s a mystery to me.

I’ve seen them try harder and care more in the EL. I’m not turning my nose up at the EL, but the CL is clearly - and by definition - the better tournament.

I daresay players stood to earn substantial bonuses had we reached the CL groups, so it’s not like there wasn’t any personal gain to be had either.

A shitty week for the club.

The players have to show what they’re made of now.
 
RH_2020 said:
I’m not so sure they were freak goals. Very good build up centre forward play - I’d have taken them all day!
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Its ok now, im getting more angrier the more I'm removed from the event and have time for resentment to simmer haha. Now actually really angry AF at the team and management now.
 
Has there been some tactical change for Tav? Is he no longer to run forward with the ball? Play 1-2s? Has he been instructed to pass back as much as possible?
Also, what’s happened to Barasic?

the most frustrating thing is that Malmö were a team of absolute shite. Cheating, cowardly shite, and we absolutely handed that to them.
 
barneythebear said:
Went to sleep for the first 10-15 minutes of the second half in both games. Don’t think we are creating enough for the amount of posession we have had in the last few games and too many off the pace.

If they think last season means they have made it they will be in for a shock this year. Hopefully just early season rust but after a solid and professional first half a very very poor second half showing.
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Pointless possession. Goldson must have more touches than the rest of the players put together.
 
Wordy_Rappinghood said:
Hard to find a single positive tonight.
Management got it wrong and it's as much on them as the players. Leaving Helander out was a ridiculous call.

Malmo anticipated almost every move we made, we were so predictable.

No excuses, that was embarrassing.
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Agreed. I had exactly the same thoughts tonight and during the 90s when we were humiliated on an almost annual basis.
 
CraigM14 said:
There was a post on here during the summer starting that Defoe had said on a podcast or something that he had spoken to a number of players at the end of last season who were considering whether they should stay or leave on a high. That much is very fucking clear now and needs to be addressed. If they don’t want to be here sell them ASAP and fund their replacements and refresh the squad because looking at that tonight it needs it. For all we talk and moan about Alfie and his reps making noise about moves, he was the one that ran himself into the ground and single handedly tried to drag us through that tonight
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Just read a comment on Twitter from a bear who was talking to a former board member who was telling him 5 players are wanting away, could pick them a mile out
 
The commentator Tidsley says, oh the irony,'' with 10 men they will be looking at penalties''.
FS, I wish !
 
Rt. Hon. Bearman said:
I don’t know. It’s a mystery to me.

I’ve seen them try harder and care more in the EL. I’m not turning my nose up at the EL, but the CL is clearly - and by definition - the better tournament.

I daresay players stood to earn substantial bonuses had we reached the CL groups, so it’s not like there wasn’t any personal gain to be had either.

A shitty week for the club.

The players have to show what they’re made of now.
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Ironically, I posted before the game that our players would have to show the commitment, drive and urgency to beat Malmo as Dundee United showed against us. They fought like maniacs to get a result. Going out with a whimper against ten men should make a few of our players look themselves in the mirror. Make no mistake, that was a major riddy tonight.
 
Discombob said:
Agreed. Hagi and Sakala did show the urgency you want from subs, but brought on too late and too much to do.
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It's a failing of SG to bring subs on at 70 & 80min. I'd bring 2 on at 60min and mibbee save one in case of an injury.

How many are we allowed in Europe?
 
I'm Intrugued to what he's Gona say about his decision to play balogun over helander.

He carries the can for that.

Helander arguably our best player in malmo.

And doesn't conceded those goals in my opinion.

Disgusted
 
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