Gerrard changing our European mindset?

AriseSirWalter

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Gerrard has instilled a confidence throughout the club when it comes to Europe that I’ve never seen.

I’m just old enough to remember our unbeaten CL run of 92/93. We got to the UEFA cup final in 2008 and while Gerrard’s team hasn’t come close to matching that I’ve never felt as confident as I have in Europe with this team.

I always felt that English teams underperformed in Europe with the exception of Liverpool. I’ve no evidence to back this up but felt their success of previous generations in Europe gave them a confidence to punch above their weight. Gerrard gives an air of expectancy when talking about euro games which probably comes from his previous success as a player.

Why shouldn’t he expect to win given what he did in Istanbul?!

Anyway, I think Liverpool and Gerrard benefited from previous Liverpool victories and we’re now benefiting from Gerrard’s previous success.

My question is, do you think this new confidence on European stage will remain when Gerrard leaves or is it unlikely that we’ll be successful enough that it’ll carry on into future teams?
 
We've never been this confident in Europe imo. We almost expect to beat teams now.

We score all the time now as well. It used to be that if we somehow knicked an away goal in Europe we loved it. Now it's just the done thing.

Give Gerrard time and the money and we will bring a European trophy to Ibrox in the next 3 years imo.
 
The biggest compliment I can pay Gerrard is that I expect us to see off any team who we should be beating in Europe, no questions asked. I can't say that about any previous manager - I'm still young, but even in my lifetime we've had exits to Kaunas, Malmo, Maribor and Zizkov, which should never happen to any Rangers team.

If we play a good team in the next round this year, it will give us a good indication as to how high our ceiling is in Europe under Gerrard. I felt we were out our depth last year against Leverkusen, it will be interesting to see how we cope against a team of similar standard a year on.
 
This is new territory for us, realistically expecting to beat most of the teams we are playing. It's great!!!

However, I hope we get to Champions league next season. Some of the bigger teams in that actually give me the fear. We will be tested like never before and it will need to be a weak group for us to progress. Most years it will be a fight for 3rd or 4th place in the current set up.
 
This is new territory for us, realistically expecting to beat most of the teams we are playing. It's great!!!

However, I hope we get to Champions league next season. Some of the bigger teams in that actually give me the fear. We will be tested like never before and it will need to be a weak group for us to progress. Most years it will be a fight for 3rd or 4th place in the current set up.
But we need to learn to fail or we will fail to learn. It’s all about new benchmarks with this team. We have progressed every year. This would be another huge stepping stone on our remarkable route back. Let’s go!
 
Just said on the match thread - loving these European games just now.
Going into every tie feeling confident we can get a result is a massive mark of the progress under Gerrard.

Growing up watching Rangers in Europe, there was always a feeling of nervousness, even against supposedly weaker sides, that we'd find a way to f.uck it....and we usually did.

Long may this current mindset continue
 
The last game is testament to the work he has done.

2-1 down at half time. Away from home. I genuinely felt confident we’d get a result.
Even into the last ten mins, I just felt confident.

it’s a whole different dynamic to the Manchester side.
 
It has to help that they are playing us with a genuine world class player in his day in charge of us . Everyone knows who he is and how he could inspire his team as a player. The thought that is who they are up against gives us an edge straight away and hopefully gives them the fear right from the start :)
 
There's no question Gerrard has changed the mindset. He's instilled a belief and confidence in the players that they're able to play their own game, no matter the opposition.
When we went ahead against Willem II in the qualifier this season, Kevin Thomson was co-commentating and was imploring the team to defend and not commit so many players to attack, which kind of typifies what I'd been used to seeing for years.
I was thinking that it was a breath of fresh air to see a Rangers team playing so confidently away from home wanting to get forward and score more rather than parking the bus and defending for their lives.
We were the width of the goalpost from going 4-1 ahead away to Benfica. Think about that for a second and then think of how we used to cling on in games against the likes of Anorthosis....
 
This is new territory for us, realistically expecting to beat most of the teams we are playing. It's great!!!

However, I hope we get to Champions league next season. Some of the bigger teams in that actually give me the fear. We will be tested like never before and it will need to be a weak group for us to progress. Most years it will be a fight for 3rd or 4th place in the current set up.
Which is where we must be extremely careful how we plan ahead.

we can’t afford to Not qualify and therefor I believe we need 2 maybe even 3 players
 
We have been fantastic in Europe under StevieG and I would say it’s down to his inspiration and the players carrying out his instructions on the pitch.

I am hopeful of qualifying for the CL ( and for younger fans we were the first British team in it ) but I feel we will have to step up a bit more.

Exciting times ahead.
 
I love the way we refuse to now play defensively and try to stop the opposition, we instead want to dominate the ball and look to score goals.

Home and away.

It's a proper big club mentality and it's great to see.
Bang on. Succinctly said what I was trying to say but rambled a bit.
 
The key for me is possession.

I’ve always felt this even as a young kid. It’s why Advocaat’s sides looked much more comfortable in Europe than Walter’s did.

Gerrard and Beale are obsessed with retaining possession and it’s why we look so assured - because the players are all very adept on the ball and don’t simply panic and hoof it up the park when pressed.

What remains to be seen is if we have enough quality in the final third to really take our chances against better quality opposition in the CL, but I’ve never felt so positive about taking on that challenge as I do under Gerrard.
 
I love the way we refuse to now play defensively and try to stop the opposition, we instead want to dominate the ball and look to score goals.

Home and away.

It's a proper big club mentality and it's great to see.
In years gone by and for as long as I can remember, at 2-1 down away from home (eg against Antwerp), we'd have been more than happy to settle for that, then try to take them back at Ibrox. This team keep chasing though, first for the equaliser, then the winner. It's a completely different mindset.
 
I have never felt so confident in Europe since the 2nd leg of the Valletta game in 1983. I used to hope more than expect but in the past 2 seasons I go in there with a belief that we are going into the next round.

Fabulous time to be a bluenose.... well it always is but now we are winning which is a bonus.
 
Gerrard has instilled a confidence throughout the club when it comes to Europe that I’ve never seen.

I’m just old enough to remember our unbeaten CL run of 92/93. We got to the UEFA cup final in 2008 and while Gerrard’s team hasn’t come close to matching that I’ve never felt as confident as I have in Europe with this team.

I always felt that English teams underperformed in Europe with the exception of Liverpool. I’ve no evidence to back this up but felt their success of previous generations in Europe gave them a confidence to punch above their weight. Gerrard gives an air of expectancy when talking about euro games which probably comes from his previous success as a player.

Why shouldn’t he expect to win given what he did in Istanbul?!

Anyway, I think Liverpool and Gerrard benefited from previous Liverpool victories and we’re now benefiting from Gerrard’s previous success.

My question is, do you think this new confidence on European stage will remain when Gerrard leaves or is it unlikely that we’ll be successful enough that it’ll carry on into future teams?
Talking about this to my son the other night. I was saying Rangers remind me of the Liverpool team that won the UEFA, FA and League Cups, in one season with Gerrard and McAllister in the team with the way we score in Europe.
Gerrard just knows how to play in this competition and it's brilliant to watch.
 
I love the way we refuse to now play defensively and try to stop the opposition, we instead want to dominate the ball and look to score goals.

Home and away.

It's a proper big club mentality and it's great to see.
Absolutely. Always focussing on how we can beat teams.
 
SG has brought his experience to the team. As an earlier poster stated we are beating teams we should be beating. When we meet a better team we typically give a good account but eventually we will be out our depth. It is inevitable in this day and age due to finances. One area we can still work on is game management when we are in wining positions. A by product of our European results should be confidence to dominate domestically. It is all about the mindset and having players with that attribute. Souness had it and he built a likeminded team helped by the English euro ban. Smith not only found leaders but also brought in players with something to prove. Advocaat upped the quality. Sadly, things slowly started to get diluted but I now feel SG demands our players have the right stuff but is still constrained by budget so what he is doing is all the more remarkable.
 
This is new territory for us, realistically expecting to beat most of the teams we are playing. It's great!!!

However, I hope we get to Champions league next season. Some of the bigger teams in that actually give me the fear. We will be tested like never before and it will need to be a weak group for us to progress. Most years it will be a fight for 3rd or 4th place in the current set up.

Porto beat Juventus the other night with a team that featured 7-8 players who played in the Porto team we beat.

If we reach the CL group stages next season it will be tough but it will allow us to add quality and we'll definitely be organised as best as we can to face the challenge.
 
Theres something I absolutely love about Gerrard saying before european games "we have a lot of respect for *insert team name*."

Because, to me, it actually implies the opposite in a way. It implies that we see ourselves as the superior team, but that we need to remember to "respect" the opponent.

Maybe I'm talking pish but I feel like that attitude is what is being alluded to in this thread, even in his press conferences he speaks as if Rangers are the big team, but we are very impressed with our opponents etc etc.
 
We have been fantastic in Europe under StevieG and I would say it’s down to his inspiration and the players carrying out his instructions on the pitch.

I am hopeful of qualifying for the CL ( and for younger fans we were the first British team in it ) but I feel we will have to step up a bit more.

Exciting times ahead.
Don't forget McAllistair has played at the top level and understands the Scottish game and Beale is the tactician. It's a team game, on and off the pitch.
 
Gerrard has instilled a confidence throughout the club when it comes to Europe that I’ve never seen.

I’m just old enough to remember our unbeaten CL run of 92/93. We got to the UEFA cup final in 2008 and while Gerrard’s team hasn’t come close to matching that I’ve never felt as confident as I have in Europe with this team.

I always felt that English teams underperformed in Europe with the exception of Liverpool. I’ve no evidence to back this up but felt their success of previous generations in Europe gave them a confidence to punch above their weight. Gerrard gives an air of expectancy when talking about euro games which probably comes from his previous success as a player.

Why shouldn’t he expect to win given what he did in Istanbul?!

Anyway, I think Liverpool and Gerrard benefited from previous Liverpool victories and we’re now benefiting from Gerrard’s previous success.

My question is, do you think this new confidence on European stage will remain when Gerrard leaves or is it unlikely that we’ll be successful enough that it’ll carry on into future teams?
The only other time I felt this confident was with Advocaat. I genuinely thought we could have done something of note with the players we had. Maybe we underperformed.
With this squad we are a much better team even if we have less individual brilliance.
 
I think we’ve found our levering the Europa league tbh. Stepping up to the CL will be very difficult, having said that it holds no fear for me, I trust Gerrard.
 
I believe we have found a different level of professionalism under SG we go into every match with a plan and more often than not the players execute it to perfection. On the European front I genuinely believe we fear no one he has installed a winning mentality and a belief that play to our strengths and we will be successful
 
The last game is testament to the work he has done.

2-1 down at half time. Away from home. I genuinely felt confident we’d get a result.
Even into the last ten mins, I just felt confident.

it’s a whole different dynamic to the Manchester side.
Totally agree. I actually (genuinely) texted my mate at half time to say I fancied us to win 4-3. Did I stick any money on it though? No :(
 
In years gone by and for as long as I can remember, at 2-1 down away from home (eg against Antwerp), we'd have been more than happy to settle for that, then try to take them back at Ibrox. This team keep chasing though, first for the equaliser, then the winner. It's a completely different mindset.
I actually had to check in the 60th minute last week that it was a 2 legged affair as i couldn't believe how much we were attacking when we had 2 away goals at that stage..it used to be..away goals-get them back to Ibrox and do the business there. Not under Stevie G,and i love it
 
I believe we have found a different level of professionalism under SG we go into every match with a plan and more often than not the players execute it to perfection. On the European front I genuinely believe we fear no one he has installed a winning mentality and a belief that play to our strengths and we will be successful
Yep he's definitely brought a level of professionalism we may not have seen before , don't shoot me for saying this but Rodgers did the same with them , he brought a level of professionalism and concentration in all domestic games which even helped them when he left BUT the big difference for me is , Gerrard in Europe is better than Rodgers in Europe , and he's only young and Gerrard has done it with a complete rebuild and less money .

exicting times for us .
 
I think he has got us playing a style where we still change a wee bit for European games but not massively. Far too many times in the past we have tried completely different styles in Europe.

Fir the first time in a long time am excited to see us in Europe. Also our recruitment is so much better. Genuinely excited to see what the club have planned for the summer window. A couple of quality additions and we could kick on like Porto.
 
Yep he's definitely brought a level of professionalism we may not have seen before , don't shoot me for saying this but Rodgers did the same with them , he brought a level of professionalism and concentration in all domestic games which even helped them when he left BUT the big difference for me is , Gerrard in Europe is better than Rodgers in Europe , and he's only young and Gerrard has done it with a complete rebuild and less money .

exicting times for us .
That’s a fair point regarding BR as you say what SG has achieved so far with a far smaller financial investment is astounding and it will be noticed all over Europe
 
Even with some decent teams in our recent past I remember watching us against minnows in European qualifiers and wondering how they looked like a better football team. We seemed to play with a backwater mentality with focus on backs to the wall defending.

Gerrard has transformed the mentality of the club leading by example. Bravery is a word he uses a lot and it’s the difference for me. We are aggressive, relentless and have the belief that we can beat teams at this level even when things don’t go to plan.

The gaffer came to the club because we are a giant in football. His ambitions for us go beyond putting the mentally challengeds back in their place and he’s not interested in the tinpot bs that’s holding the rest of Scotland back.
 
Even when they scored their 3rd I said to the Mrs “we’ll win this 5-3.” I wasn’t too far away!
We are playing like we are European campaigners with no fear, whoever it is, we play to win. The Benfica and Porto games are the big name tests we have faced and held our own, and that is the level we will be stepping up to in the later rounds and the Champions League.
Under Stevie G I feel our team work will improve and get tighter, so when we are under the cosh, we will be lighting quick on the counter, and if we dominate we will be surer in our passing and be in tune with each other a wee bit more.
This isn’t the end of the ride, this is just the beginning!
 
This mindset is been drummed into the players from day one.
Sure we will get beat but we learn and take it on board. And
We have done, I think we can dominate Scottish football, and
Have success in our euro adventures for years to come. Looking
Forward we are in a good place thanks to our board and Steven G.
 
For as long as I've watched Rangers in Europe I can never remember any our teams going toe to toe with foreign teams with such confidence. Don't get me wrong of course there has been some wonderful results over the years just never the same well drilled assured free flowing football that's been a hallmark of our recent play to my memory.

We have some outstanding talents in our squad although imo we still lack that top drawer quality to go all the way this year, although it wouldn't be the first time I've been wrong. The way we have improved year on year who knows, that could well change sooner than I think.

Considering the poor standard of opposition Rangers face on a weekly basis our consistent performances against significantly stronger European teams have been nothing short of remarkable. Gerrard and his staff have given this club our identity back both home and abroad. A Rangers to be proud of on the home front in the shape of our timely 55th title and the huge bonus of a competitive Rangers in Europe.
 
Theres something I absolutely love about Gerrard saying before european games "we have a lot of respect for *insert team name*."

Because, to me, it actually implies the opposite in a way. It implies that we see ourselves as the superior team, but that we need to remember to "respect" the opponent.

Maybe I'm talking pish but I feel like that attitude is what is being alluded to in this thread, even in his press conferences he speaks as if Rangers are the big team, but we are very impressed with our opponents etc etc.
He talked really confidently before the first leg about being aggressive, showing what a good team we are and making sure Antwerp felt our power. Never heard a Rangers manager talk like that in my life. Amazing.
 
Considering where we are in our recovery our performances in Europe are consistently exceeding expectations. However we haven't been to a quarter final yet so I think we should be a bit measured in comparing this side to previous sides who have gone further. No doubt though, we are going in the right direction. Our efforts against Porto, in particular, give me great hope for the future.
 
A lot of our managers have been Scottish, so we shouldn't be surprised when we struggled to play a possession game and become overly cautious and defensive when playing against European opposition. That's not to knock them, as the Scottish managers we have had have been second to none when it came to winning the league. However, times have changed, the priority is now to builds teams that are able to compete in Europa League, with the hope of the occasional Champions League appearance, because we really need the money there to progress as a club.
 
To be honest, I am still expecting us to be pumped in every game we play in Europe.

That progres game with Pedro destroyed me.

So every great result in Europe is mind blowing to me and is bringing me great joy and pride. Great times.
 
For me it is a difference in Scottish/English mentality.

We in plucky Scotland, generally speaking, have a bit of an inferiority complex, and tend to get all excited because Johnny Foreigner says Rangers/Celtic are a massive club, almost as if we revel in that validation from outsiders. Witness the build up and hyperbole in the press before and after anytime a Scottish team plays one of the larger European teams, as if it the biggest match of all time. It is that bit more noticeable in the East End, where Celtic fans still go on about beating Barcelona in 2012 as if they had won the Best Team in the Universe of all Time Cup.

Whereas in England, they tend to go into competition expecting to do well, either winning things or at least getting to the latter stages. Could be considered a healthy arrogance. Beating an Inter Milan, Barcelona, Holland, France, is almost expected, and Gerrard lived that life as a player.

A Scottish manager would go to Antwerp and try and keep it tight early on, men behind the ball, try and nick an away goal, etc. Whereas Gerrard has clearly said go and impose your game on them, and win the game. And that’s the way it should be.
 
Gerrard has improved us no end in Europe, we've produced fantastic results against some really dangerous opponents under his leadership.

Scoring four at Royal Antwerp was just another one of those European nights we've become used to.

It's getting to the stage where you wonder just how far this team can go this year. Not counting my chickens though, I'm too long in the tooth for that.
 
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