The great Rangers sides were always built from the defence

The goals we’ve lost of late have been a shambles. Outside signing Hagi and a replacement striker if Morelos goes we should be spending £5m plus on a CB. I’d sign Kamberi too, he won’t cost much now he’s burnt his bridges with Hivs!
 
It is true that there were times when we relied heavily on our defence but not always. The Ritchie, Sheare, Caldow, Grieg, McKinnon, Baxter, Henderson, MacMillan, Brand and Wilson team, certainly had decent defenders but because of our attacking way of playing, they were seldom under pressure.
 
We shouldnt be losing 2 goals a game to any team in Scotland in any season. For the likes of Hearts, Kilmarnock and St johnstone to do so in a matter of weeks is downright negligence. Our centre backs have went to pieces. its like watching Karl Svenson all over again. I'd also apportion some blame to McGregor who refuses to claim long balls when they are clearly travelling into the 18 yard box.
 
The number of goals conceded - two at Hearts, Killie and St J - is shocking. Wasn’t like that in the first half of the season.
 
We’ve been a bombscare recently. With the same back 5 who’ve been solid in the past. Very strange.
 
If I was gerrard I would be looking to get his mate Carragher up specifically for training the defenders. Lock them in auchienhowie until they can clear their lines and defend as a unit
 
SG 8 said:
If I was gerrard I would be looking to get his mate Carragher up specifically for training the defenders. Lock them in auchienhowie until they can clear their lines and defend as a unit
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The ball watching from our defence at corners or crosses is frightening. They should be running through brick walls to attack the ball and clear their lines.
 
When was the last time an opposition defender gifted us 2 goals in the same game ? Anyone ? Let alone against poor teams like St Johnstone. On the contrary they are usually performing heroics throwing bodies in front of everything and making last ditch tackles. Why the eff does this happen to us? We always seem to score great goals and lose awful ones. Goldson and Katic are not fundamentally bad players but the inconsistency at times is enough to make you weep. Today was an accident waiting to happen every time they broke forward.
 
monkey magic said:
Basic stuff like Row Z for the ball if in trouble seems like quantum physics to our defenders. The cheap goals we regularly concede are just horrific.
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We are making defending look difficult. Mind some footage of Clough taking a training session at Derby, and Roy McFarland was posing about in defence “McFarland if you cant boot the ball out the park I’ll replace you with a raw nineteen year old who can”
 
It’s strange as the first thing Gerrard sorted out was the defence, but for whatever reason we’ve gone massively backwards in this department.
 
Souness talks about this on the 86-87 championship season video. He says his main priority when he took over was to build from the back, like the great Forest team of the late 70s with Shilton, Larry Lloyd and Kenny Burns.
 
jprfc said:
Souness talks about this on the 86-87 championship season video. He says his main priority when he took over was to build from the back, like the great Forest team of the late 70s with Shilton, Larry Lloyd and Kenny Burns.
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League 1985/86
P36 W13 D9 L14 F53 A45

League 86/87
P44 W31 D7 L6 F85 A23

Of those 23 league goals conceded (across 44 games note), 6 were conceded in the first 4 games.
 
All played in an era when youd get away with kicking f*ck out other players. Its a different game now
 
I know the centre halfs are taking a doing for the goals conceded but if you watch a lot of these goals again you may notice how many times they are isolated at the back with no sign of our full backs.
 
AdiGaz said:
All played in an era when youd get away with kicking f*ck out other players. Its a different game now
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I keep hearing this but it's not really true is it? Good defending is not about kicking feck out of other players. It's about being in the correct positions, not getting caught up the park, decision making in when to clear your lines, not getting caught ball watching and always tracking your runner.

The game is just the same as it's always been, if you don't lose goals you don't lose games.
 
Even the lack of ability to attack a ball at set pieces is more evidence of this tbh. I can only think of two goals direct from corners this season... I could be wrong but Goldson at Kilmarnock and Katic against them??
 
jprfc said:
Souness talks about this on the 86-87 championship season video. He says his main priority when he took over was to build from the back, like the great Forest team of the late 70s with Shilton, Larry Lloyd and Kenny Burns.
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Lloyd and Burns rarely ventured beyond their own 18 yard line. I know Burns initially was a centre forward but Clough and Taylor employed them both to pretty much defend and defend only and to hoof it into row z if necessary
 
Scoot said:
Lloyd and Burns rarely ventured beyond their own 18 yard line. I know Burns initially was a centre forward but Clough and Taylor employed them both to pretty much defend and defend only and to hoof it into row z if necessary
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Defending is pretty simple. You stop the opposition scoring.

That's your job and sometimes that just involves booting the ball into Row Z. It shouldn't involve mazy 40 yard runs - that's what the midfield is for.

Clear your lines first and then worry about everything else.
 
In the final game before the Steven Gerrard era, we shipped 5 goals at Easter Road.

Soon after, in an interview, Gary McCallister wryly noted along the lines, "They conceded 5 goals in one game...it's not difficult to see what area needs improved first".

The best part of 20 months later and we're still waiting.
 
monkey magic said:
From Woodburn, Young, Greig, Butcher, Gough, etc. We need this ethos brought back, and quickly. The cheap and amateurish goals and games we lose at present should be preventable.
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We should have done what Souness did, and that's by building the team with your strongest players,straight down the middle.
If at all possible with quality players, if finance allows. At the moment our central defenders are poor, our midfield is powder puff, and needs an enforcer who can win the ball and give it to our creative players, i.e.Hagi & Aribo.
And if Morelos can't reproduce his previou form, we need to bring in soomeone who can.Maybe another good striker alongside Flo.Kamberi could be the answer.Changes have to be made during the close season, as this squad just isn't good enough, to take us back to the top of the tree, where we belong.imo.
 
We desperately need another quality left back along with a new centre half partnership with Helander and another commanding centre half.
 
Our defence is a weak shambles. We have had plenty of clean sheets this season, but even in those games there are far too many moments we've rode a storm and just about got away with it, or rely too heavily on McGregor. We need to sort it out (not sure we can given finances and long term contracts) or else sustainable success will be a long way off.
 
Walter Smith(and many other top managers) used to say, we win as a team, and we lose as a team. Gerrard picking out the central defensive pair, and publicly stating that he's not surprised at the loss of goals and he can't wait for Helander to come back, is poor man management. Mcgregor to me fails to command the 6 yard box.. 2nd goal was his ball all day. Our defence is put under more pressure by the poor form of the rest of the team. Kent is dire, Morelos couldn't hit a barndoor, most of the midfield have been shocking since xmas, and offer very little protection to the defence. Our defence is taking the blame for the incompetence at the other end of the park.
 
That was what you expect from a Rangers side in a defensive sense. The ultimate example was Fiorentina away but last night was good.
 
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