Bakbear

Precisely why this is a non-story. He basically is saying all players have a price but we are no longer the bargain basement.

It’s not even in the top ten of nonsensical stuff he has said

He looked like he was running in treacle a couple of times last night. I feel much more confident in Katic.

I actually prefers the comments on Livingston is not forgotten. That’s exactly how I feel and I am glad the gaffer is still stinging from that result. Hope it drives us on for a strong run of consistency

I wouldn’t even really know who I would want to pick up points out of the other lot. I guess Hearts and Sheep mostly. I don’t think the sheep are up to much this time round

Great build up play too Edit; I was thinking of the Arfield goal

Very very good today but I would still prefer Barisic was starting. That said we hammered them that first half today without Barisic, Katic and Grezda

That is fucking glorious.

So I have a question that in the wave of all this positivity may appear slightly negative. It’s not intended as such but.... Does Stevie G take the league as seriously as he does the Europa? he says he does. But then a lot of what he is saying on other subjects make me wonder. He keeps talking up the Europa opposition yet when he refers to Scottish oppostition he tends to start his sentence with “with all due respect” which is usually code for “I have no respect”. I love the man I really do. But there has to be a reason that we go from a turgid defeat to Livingston to a triumphant performance over a European outfit. As elated as I am about last night, last Sunday still stings. I still think Motherwell away also shouldn’t have been as close as it was. I genuinely believe we can get the consistency he refers to in our away league matches but I can’t help having a niggling doubt that we are not taking those games nearly as seriously as we should. Also. Someone posted a stat that only 8 teams had ever reached the group stage having entered at the first round. Wonder how many of those 8 teams have passed the group stage

It’s wednesday now and I am still scunnered with that performance and result. Meltdown? Maybe. The players we fielded on Sunday were good enough to get a result. They just didn’t show up and I fully believe it was the pitch that got in their heads. After the injury to Jamie Murphy I think our team absolutely shat it on that pitch and didn’t want to get injured. It has been said time and again that when this team plays with bravery we are amongst the best in the league but when we play with fear and nervousness you get Sunday. These players need to start believing in themselves and understand what playing for this club requires. I think Gerrard gets it but he needs to instill it in his team and that is taking more time than we have available.

This isn’t right though. 6 changes from Ayr. But Ayr was a cup match that we made changes for. What were the six changes? mcGregor in for Fod Goldson in for Katic Barisic in for Halliday Tav in for Flanagan. Thats four changes just with our first choice players coming back in. Yes there was a lot of changes but that shouldn’t be a problem. The fact is we played pish. The players on the pitch are good enough to beat Livingston. They just didn’t turn up today. The manager wants to start figuring out what combinations works for use. I personally don’t think the midfield 3 will ever play together again. Lafferty and Morelos shouldn’t play together again.

I actually hope they give him money in January. He will waste it.

I Have noted over the years that you learn a lot about the success or failure of a football manager by the trend of his performances. Often you hear “he needs time” but there is literally no improvement from game to game and after 6 or 7 games you can tell it’s not going to get better (Caixinha) sometimes, you get a new manager bounce where immediately the performances improve but then over time there is no upward trajectory and ultimately the decline kicks in (Warburton) when you have a good manager you see an upward trend, you get better with each game, with or without a spike in performance to start it off. We have a good management. The uptick in our performance was immediate, the trend is improving, momentum is building, belief is growing, morale is high. yes I believe we can win it this season

If we can get all three fit it will be a great boost. Rossiter looks a great prospect but I have already given up on him being fit If Wallace can get back to where he was in Warburtons first season then he would be a great option as cover for Barisic Grezda I know nothing about but seems rated

I think we all felt the depth of the squad was a problem but given that he is getting more out of Halliday, McRorie, and Jack. Given that Dorrans and Wallace are coming back into contention. Middleton and Kent have excelled versus my expectation. Worrall was added in centre half and looked good against Villarreal. Ejaria is coming into a game and Candeias is really performing. The only real exposure is up front. With Lafferty, Morelos and Sadiq its thread bare. But manageable in our system Gerrard has declared his satisfaction with the size of the squad. I think he is managing the rotation brilliantly ensuring everyone stays engaged and ready without too much disruption to the performances. Compare and contrast with the meltdown across the City. Now it’s true they can go out and spend 20 million in the window (no laughing at the back) but we already see that spending money is no guarantee if you have a manager that can’t motivate

Agree with all of that. But I believe we will win it. Of course we take one game at a time. That’s a cliche for a reason However the togetherness, the quality, the improvement in players who we thought were duds, the depth of our squad, the character we have shown in Europe all contribute to this belief we could all pinpoint opportunities last season that could have seen us easily contenders at a time when we had terrible management and worse players. There was still a gap. I don’t believe there is a gap now. As most others have said, only remaining psychological hurdle is a win against them. Once that is achieved, and I believe it will be achieved at the next meeting, we will be on our way to 55 and fuck it, I fully understand that I am being carried away but it feels great to believe again

All we need as a team is belief and I think the results in Europe are giving us that. That St Johnstone team are no mugs. We completely strolled that today. Possibly more so than versus Dundee and this on the back of an away trip to a La Liga side. We are rotating the squad. Getting great performances out of what we’re average players in the recent past. Our whole squad are pulling together and showing their character and no little abilities Make no mistake. We have all the tools to win this league and I now fully believe we will.

I thought we would struggle this season Then I thought we might be competitive Then I felt like we would come second for sure Now I believe we will win it. We are looking very very strong

I don’t give a fuck what anyone says, Ally McCoist was my hero growing up. Not a hero. The hero. He was my absolute idol. Yep he was a shit manager and frankly I have been disappointed with some of his behaviour in taking so much money out the club when we needed t most, but like a dad who you look up to when you're wee then turns out to be a bit of a dick when you’re old enough to understand better, I still love McCoist and bar him doing something truely outrageous, I always will. Would love to have a few pints with him and understand his perspective and the story from his side.

I am actually surprised that this wasn’t commonly understood. Anyone that did not understand that Reid was the main protagonist in the campaign to destroy Rangers just wasn’t paying attention. I thought in 2008 it was understood but seen as typical ambulance chasing behaviour. I don’t think anyone could have foreseen the much much worse skullduggery that was yet to come. I will never be convinced that the pursuit of Rangers by HMRC was anything other than an orchestrated victimisation of our club at the behest of life peer and Baron John Reid prominent political figure with huge influence due to his political career. Fact. Rangers debt was a very manageable 18 million pounds when we were forced into admin. Fact. EBTs were legal tax avoidance as advised by the best tax minds at the time. Fact. Well maybe a fact perhaps someone else can confirm. HMRC have yet to pursue any other business to the full extent without any interest in negotiated settlement for use of EBTs. But rather settled with a few amicably. Only Rangers did they pursue doggedly. But we all know this We were done up like kippers. And the only force strong enough to instigate that would have been someone with serious governmental influence.

Honestly, reading through this thread we do ourselves no favours. I am unionist, atheist and I like good old Queen Lizzie. No time for her offspring though. Does that mean I am not a Rangers fan? I am Unionist because I believe we share more with our neighbours to the south than we differ. I could go on for ages why I am who I am, but that is not the point of my comment. if we don’t engage in this debate we lose it. If we simply ignore the growing propaganda and call those who succumb to it nasty names and dismiss them, we only make them stronger, we only push them away more. The question is, who in politics is representing your interests? Obviously not SNP! Not Labour and the Tories are fucked up. There are no political options. That is why SNP have picked up so many supporters from all walks of life. They are playing to the gallery and using populist politics I see people saying get out and vote, who for? The political arena has become so polarised now, centrist politics is dead, everything is extreme and many in Scotland when faced with extreme left or extreme right will sway towards the left. Myself included. SNP is a Nationalist movement. It’s inevitable that it looks like every other nationalist movement, the most obvious comparison being Sinn Feinn, but this nationalist movement has taken root in all walks of life and Rangers supporters will be no different. It has taken hold in politics, in government, in businesses. I have said before I can’t see how the momentum can be turned. If you look at the generational voting, a vast majority of today’s youth vote SNP. A growing number of youth have been brought up in a world where the Union Flag is considered racist and where Rangers represent bigotry. In 20 years when today’s pensioners are gone and another new generation of voters has come through, it is inevitable that there will be a majority who support independence. You want to change that? You want to swing those voters? The answer is not belittling them and telling them they are no Rangers fan, the answer is engaging them and debating with them and educating them on your point of view

It’s not even close. The debate on offside or not is surely settled. I don’t think anyone is arguing it was offside

It’s just stupid. No matter how you look at it or pass it off as part of his game. Rash tackles can be part of an aggressive strikers game. You don’t want to take the aggression out of his game because that’s what makes them different but Morelos little kick outs and hissy fits are not aggression. They are stupidity. Kicking the ball away in Russia - Stupid arguing with the ref about it - Stupid. Getting constantly caught offside (even though he was a mile onside yesterday) - stupid diving to try and get a penalty yesterday while on a yellow - Stupid barging players in the back when on a yellow - Stupid i could go through most games and select examples of his stupidity I also said yesterday that he was a candidate for man of the match, the guy has talent. He is one of our best players. But he is volatile and immature and maybe if he genuinely has intelligence that immaturity will go away but he is not a teenager and I doubt he is going to change much

I don’t particularly want to get involved in this wee debate however I do genuinely think that Morelos has some issues. first there is undoubtedly ability there. Gerrard can see it, Falcao can see it and so can most of the people who are arguing over him. Let’s agree he has ability However during yesterday’s game I was reminded of Tino Asprilla. Another Colombian with even more ability than Alfredo, but perhaps with as much of a mentality issue. I made a joke a couple of weeks back but in every joke there is a little truth, I just think Morelos is not the brightest. He needed subbed yesterday because he was starting his petulant kick outs and barges. The spitting incident as well. Innocent enough but why spit anywhere near another player. Be needs to really screw the nut and stop acting like a wee boy. He can be a player for us and he can earn a move but it will all hinge on him controlling his petulance

Thought he was very good today but honestly more delighted that it’s a toss up between him Arfield, Kent and Candeias for MOTM Morelos did well and Coulibaly makes a massive difference to our balance. There’s 6 players you can throw praise at and not a single one today that wasn’t good.