By Lee Clark
Rangers youngster, Leon King, says it has never even crossed his mind to leave Rangers, and the prospect of being involved in the Clubs’ upcoming League Cup tie, with Queen of the South, is all the motivation he needs to continue trying to turn his managers’ head and cement a more regular spot in the Ibrox first team. He admits the prospect of facing three European giants in Liverpool, Napoli and Ajax, in the Champions League group stage hasn’t quite sunk in yet, after he strolled through 45 minutes at Ibrox this afternoon, replacing John Sands at the break, as Rangers dismantled Ross County with the sort of domestic performance that the home support has become accustomed to seeing, on the European stage.
King has been in and around the first team squad for a while now and has seen limited game time, but after featuring in two home games in a row, he is simultaneously relaxed and excited at the situation and spoke with a maturity, to match his display on the field.
‘It’s always great and still surreal, being a young player, getting the nod to go and play in front of the fans at Ibrox. It’s amazing that I’ve got all these top class players, to learn from day in, day out and if I do get a chance I’ve got to be there to grasp it with both hands. I’m solely focused on this Club and delighted to still be here and just focused on getting 90 minutes in the tank (on Tuesday).’
For many Bluenoses, today felt like the day, the domestic season truly started. A ridiculous statement I know, given we are 5 games in but, there was a buzz about the place and an energy in the team that has been missing in the opening weeks. Of course, this isn’t too much of a surprise, the highs of last season were always going to be tricky to emulate however, after a gloomy trip to Easter Road last weekend and the first dropped points of the season, the players and manager deserve every bit of credit coming their way as they roared into the Champions League group stages before hammering County, to properly kick-start a season which will see Rangers embark on at least 20 games in just 77 days before the start of the World Cup. Leon King didn’t fully agree with that sentiment but, did acknowledge the significance of Wednesdays result.
‘The team has been so together since the start of the season, ever since we boarded that plane to Portugal. Everyone is lively, everyone is happy but certainly Wednesday has given us that boost as we are now back where we feel we should be. I’m too young to have experienced a Champions League night at Ibrox so even as a fan it’s something I’m really looking forward to.’
Whilst it’s early days for Leon King, he epitomises everything good about Rangers right now. The attitude shown by him, along with another bright prospect, Alex Lowry in recent months is testament to the togetherness of this group and how well they are developing under GVB and not just in a footballing sense. Here we have two young players, who know their game time will be limited for a while; know they will return to B team action when called upon and know they will have to warm the bench for long periods, yet they will do so with smiles on their faces, as they ALREADY see the bigger picture. Of course, GVB can’t take all the credit for this, Rangers have been on this trajectory since Steven Gerrard’s arrival 5 years ago and for many fans, they see a return to the Champions League as the ‘journey finally being complete’. For me though? This is just the beginning!
As today’s game entered the final half hour, with Rangers cruising and 3-0 up, the ‘old guard’ entered the fray. Usually in this sort of situation you expect a drop in intensity, perhaps even a little complacency but, if that was the case, someone forgot to tell Scotty Arfield and Steven Davis. Both came onto the field with the sort of appetite and hunger you would expect from guys a decade younger. Arfield in particular seemed to cover every blade of grass and should’ve done better when put through on goal from a superb King pass. Where he failed, Steven Davis would prosper however, as he quite majestically let the ball run across his body and casually pass it into the net for Rangers 4th and final goal of the afternoon from a Tavernier cross. Of course, Davis and Arfield playing well for Rangers is nothing new but, it’s the attitude and application of two guys, who may also find their game time a bit more limited this season (although for entirely different reasons), which will please the Ibrox crowd the most. Arfield had spoken pre-game about the need to approach Ross County with the same sort of intensity that seen off PSV in midweek and didn’t he and his team mates deliver? For many fans, the strength of the squad has long been a concern, particularly when mixing it with the big boys but, being able to call on this sort of hunger, laced with experience must surely please even the most sceptical of Bluenoses. Manager, Giovanni Van Bronckhorst agreed:
‘It’s all about the start. When you start games like this your intensity of passing a movement doesn’t drop off and I think we reached a really high level today. We have a squad we can rotate but we also need to develop the team and allow them to get stronger. I could easily have picked players from the bench to start the game. Leon came on at half time and put in a very mature performance and we were then able to make more changes after an hour. I think you can see, even with the changes we made the level of intensity and performance didn’t drop and as a manager that’s exactly what you want.’
That last sentence from the manager, in particular is quite telling. I think most of us will admit that this isn’t something we could always attribute to recent Rangers squads but, as the team prepares for three MASSIVE away ties on both the domestic and European front, following Queen of the South on Tuesday, Rangers very much feel like they are progressing nicely and finding form just the right time. After a ten year absence this is a run of fixtures we have been hoping for, no scratch that ACHING for. There is no question the task ahead is an arduous one but, despite there being a clamour, from the usual suspects, to repeatedly throw negativity into the mix this is a squad and management team who are continuing to develop, they are continuing to progress and above all they are together, in every aspect, as they repeatedly prove the doubters wrong.
Can I be the first to say, LET’S GET IT ON!
