It doesnt matter about the formation

[martyboy2009 11]

No matter what formation smith puts out, 3-4-3, 4-5-1, 4-4-2 or whatever, when he plays players like mcculloch, whittaker, lafferty there is not a hope in hell of playing decent let alone gettin a result. Never have i seen a team so narrow, with such a lack of movement and imagination. We play football at 5mph, we go 2-0 down and we sit and play like were 2-0 up. Something is seriously wrong at rangers. The team, the managements just pish. Really disappointed about tonight, but when we have 3 diddys and davis in midfield we cant expect to make chances

[RyanRfc 49]

Not much smith can do mate, the money and quality and a strong board just isnt here its really sad to watch how shit we are. Really bad days at Glasgow Rangers

[martyboy2009 11]

Not much smith can do mate, the money and quality and a strong board just isnt here its really sad to watch how shit we are. Really bad days at Glasgow Rangers

but smith bought these players mate, 2 million for whittaker, 3.5 for lafferty and 2.5 for mcculloch. 8 million pounds. on that.

[gsa 3,906]

Not much smith can do mate, the money and quality and a strong board just isnt here its really sad to watch how shit we are. Really bad days at Glasgow Rangers

Not much Smith can do? When he had money to spend he bought, Lafferty, Whittaker, Velicka, Mcculloch, etc. Yes he had no money this season but overall he's had plenty and he has spent it poorly.

[BritishBear 34]

Not much smith can do mate, the money and quality and a strong board just isnt here its really sad to watch how shit we are. Really bad days at Glasgow Rangers

Not much Smith can do? When he had money to spend he bought, Lafferty, Whittaker, Velicka, Mcculloch, etc. Yes he had no money this season but overall he's had plenty and he has spent it poorly.

You are being very kind, he has fucking wasted millions.

[rosshleach 0]

First up, Walter Smith has done so much for Rangers, a true legend, and is acting admirably in these difficult times.

But what frustrates me is that, from time to time, he does something crazy.

I also agree we are short of quality, especially so for more athletic, pacy, players who can control a game. Especially in midfield.

However, tonight the starting formation was crazy, absolutely crazy. I may have seen this differently so do chip in on how you thought we lined up. For me it was (and I see now that i have posted that the editing has moved my formation....):

McGregor

Lee M Weir Wilson

Whittaker Papac

Davis Thomson Lafferty

Miller

Boyd

Now I dont know what you would describe that as? A "fu*kingmess" formation? It was like a back 3, with 2 full backs in front, a sort of 3 man midfield, Miller wide right, with Boyd isolated in the middle.

So, we shoot ourselves in the foot, by letting Stuttgart gaim momentum in possessin as no one knew what they were doing in our team. Miller was practically playing as a right back for the first 20 mins.

Only once we go a goal down we then go more like a 4-4-2. We did improve a bit before half time because of this.

Then, he shifts Lafferty to the right, and we have Thomson sort of tucked in on the left. A guy with little pace.

Again, I agree we have little quality (McG, Weir in his pomp, Wilson, Davis apart) but when the team is badly organised too, its double trouble.

Its like the bad old days of Gothenburg and Strasbourg, with far weaker players and less prospect for improvement.

[wearethemighty 186]

No matter what formation smith puts out, 3-4-3, 4-5-1, 4-4-2 or whatever, when he plays players like mcculloch, whittaker, lafferty there is not a hope in hell of playing decent let alone gettin a result. Never have i seen a team so narrow, with such a lack of movement and imagination. We play football at 5mph, we go 2-0 down and we sit and play like were 2-0 up. Something is seriously wrong at rangers. The team, the managements just pish. Really disappointed about tonight, but when we have 3 diddys and davis in midfield we cant expect to make chances

U know whatever system he plays 451 343(?) 352 he almost always plays the same players and they in turn just dont seem to respond to his 'tactics'.

I remember when wee dick was incharge if we werent doing it right on the pitch hed make a tactically switch and change the game around.

I even remember him bringing in Mciness out the blue for a special role in a match that proved to be a master stroke, thats the kind of manager we need, not someone as tactically deficient as Smith is. Yeah he had done well in his first stint as manager but times and football has changed alot since then.

Actually wish PLG was still our manager, at least he was progressive!

[simplythebest 11,453]

Smith has made some shocking buys.

[rosshleach 0]

No matter what formation smith puts out, 3-4-3, 4-5-1, 4-4-2 or whatever, when he plays players like mcculloch, whittaker, lafferty there is not a hope in hell of playing decent let alone gettin a result. Never have i seen a team so narrow, with such a lack of movement and imagination. We play football at 5mph, we go 2-0 down and we sit and play like were 2-0 up. Something is seriously wrong at rangers. The team, the managements just pish. Really disappointed about tonight, but when we have 3 diddys and davis in midfield we cant expect to make chances

U know whatever system he plays 451 343(?) 352 he almost always plays the same players and they in turn just dont seem to respond to his 'tactics'.

I remember when wee dick was incharge if we werent doing it right on the pitch hed make a tactically switch and change the game around.

I even remember him bringing in Mciness out the blue for a special role in a match that proved to be a master stroke, thats the kind of manager we need, not someone as tactically deficient as Smith is. Yeah he had done well in his first stint as manager but times and football has changed alot since then.

Actually wish PLG was still our manager, at least he was progressive!

yep. good point, he also did the same with Tugay in Monaco, went 3-5-2 with him as a sweeper. worked very well.

[StevenDavis 112]

Tbf, much like Naismith, Lafferty isn't a winger. It's a mix of bad form and not being deployed correctly. Defenitely not worth 3.5million though.

[BlueSuedeSambas 54,417]

There is enough quality to at least put up a challenge.

What there isn't is the right approach towards the modern game.

Completely overrun by fitter, more mobile and more athlethic players in all three home games.

Time for a modern day approach and not these timewarps back to the mid 90's.

[Amac9 2,060]

Tonight's formation was as if it was pulled out of a hat!

[BIGDOAD 8]

listened to walters interview on the way home and it's more or less been made out as our fault for demanding attacking football and thats whats left us open

for teams to take us apart , i'm sorry but in the whole three games i've not seen this team as an attacking force once i'm actually embarssed by that shite tonight !

[wearethemighty 186]

Walter is living on past glories, ok so we got to the uefa final, albeit by defending, being hard to break down, but when has he ever played an attacking system?

Miller was brought in to fit a style of play that he saw us playing, as was the likes of lafferty thompson (remeber when he played against us for hibs in the 3nil drubbing?) ie boring sit back let a team try break us down and then attack in the last five mins of each half, its embarrasing!

Teams like falkirk and st mirrens etc, attack us, and we just sit and defend, how many times do we get the ball all the way up the park then it gets played all the way down to the keeper? tonight in the first half shittaker wins a throw in plays it to davis he plays it to weir he plays it to mcgregor, where the fuck dd that move come from?

WS just wants us to play damage limitation type of football.

They say you should never come back to a club where youve been succesfull, 'they' are fukin bang on. Walter close the door on the way out.

[freakzilla 0]

Walter has made many players in the squad go backwards, a decent manager with formal training a formation ideas would get the best out of these players, Look at Charlie Adam down at blackpool, new manager, new ideas, new fitness regime and hes is reborn to the player we had under Le Guen. Forget about they are just shite and cannot be of any use there is a player inside most of them (bar Mcculloch) and any manager/coach who isn't just wanting to be one of the boys will get it out of them.

[Garnock Blue 317]

Walter is living on past glories, ok so we got to the uefa final, albeit by defending, being hard to break down, but when has he ever played an attacking system?

Miller was brought in to fit a style of play that he saw us playing, as was the likes of lafferty thompson (remeber when he played against us for hibs in the 3nil drubbing?) ie boring sit back let a team try break us down and then attack in the last five mins of each half, its embarrasing!

Teams like falkirk and st mirrens etc, attack us, and we just sit and defend, how many times do we get the ball all the way up the park then it gets played all the way down to the keeper? tonight in the first half shittaker wins a throw in plays it to davis he plays it to weir he plays it to mcgregor, where the fuck dd that move come from?

WS just wants us to play damage limitation type of football.

They say you should never come back to a club where youve been succesfull, 'they' are fukin bang on. Walter close the door on the way out.

you a beith man mate? just wondered bout the name

[Jimfanciesthedude 24,934]

we didnt have the best players the manchester year but by fuck we WORKED for it and managed the basics

not this time around

[Muff 245]

It does matter about the formation. The formation was wrong from the start, the players were all over the place, and it allowed Stuttgart to settle, and dictate play from the off!

So, yes the formation did matter, and the manager got it horribly wrong. Even a fucking amateur like me spotted it three hours before kick off.