Walter is finally getting the best from his players

[BlueIsTheColour 35]

It has been discussed at length over the last couple of days as to why our results and performances have suddenly shot to the dizzying heights we never thought possible from this crop of players. Everything from team selection and tactics to player incentives and even McCoist running the team have been put forward as possible reasons.

But i feel the reason is very simple. Walter is finally getting the best from his players.

Why this has suddenly become the case only the coaching staff and the players themselves can possible know, but all that matters is these players are producing some of their best performances in a Rangers shirt at the moment. And with a most arduous run of games on the horizon it couldn't happen at a better time.

Over the course of the first 5 months of the current campaign it has been interesting to note that Walter never fielded the same team in two consecutive matches. Players like Novo, Naismith, Lafferty, McCulloch, Miller and Beasley have all been used in almost a refined rotation system, with all of them coming in and out of the team. It was impossible to predict who the manager would play each game, aside from the defence, our most settled area of the park.

This didn't just happen because Walter liked to keep us guessing, it was because the aforementioned players couldn't sustain any level of good form when they got their chance. Lafferty and Novo especially would produce one good performance but then flatter to decieve when the got rewarded with another chance. The fans quickly get on the players backs and suddenly the manager is forced into changing his selection again. This lack of consistency in player performances is inextricably linked to the reason why there existed a similar lack of team selection consistency.

But after St Johnstone it all changed. All due to the performances of four men;

Miller - His form up until the Saints game had been very fractured. His performance in the win over Celtic, where he grabbed a brace to secure the three points was the highlight of the season, and it looked like his injury worries were hampering his performances considerably. But in the last three games he has scored 4 goals and produced the type of energetic and hustling displays that earned Kenny another chance at Rangers. He seems to save his best for the big games and there is no shortage of those on the horizon. Hopefully he can sustain his goal-scoring run for a while longer.

Boyd - The goal machine was always widely criticised for his lack of involvement in the game and his poor technical ability. These criticisms were certainly not based on nothing, and Boyd himself and Walter would have been well aware of this. This is an aspect of his game which has drastically improved recently as the big hitman has contributed more and more to the general play of the team, and has even provided assists for his teammates. All this without dampening his incredible ability to put the ball in the net too. Just working towards a new contract? Maybe. But he is undoubtedly one of the first names on the teamsheet and due to his performances of late, Boyd deserves to be.

Beasley - 3 weeks ago he was a forgotten man at Ibrox, a forlorn figure just waiting for the exit door to open and release him from the frustration endured during his Rangers career. Talk of him leaving last summer was rife and a proposed move to Shalke was only halted at the last minute due to a problem with wages at the German side. Yet here he is after his third consecutive start, three dynamic performances and two superb goals to boot. No footballing guru could have predicted the dramatic turnaroun for Beasley in the last three games. A good display as a substitute against Falkirk earned him a starting place when St Johnstone came to Ibrox, and the little American hasn't looked back. A thrilling display of pace and trickery meant he kept his place for the trip to Tannadice, where once again stunned the Rangers support with another memorable performance, scoring one of the goals of the season in the process. This continued in the 6-1 demolition of Motherwell and Beasley was once again on the scoresheet.

What a turnaround!!

With the World Cup in the summer the American internationalist is beginning to justify a place in his national side as well as a Rangers side on great form.

Novo - Any good form has eluded our beloved Nacho for most of this season and last as he struggled to make an impact on matches and has been used sparingly by Walter. 20 minute cameo appearences have been all that the fiesty Spaniard could manage recently. It has been said by many that an extended run in the team is what Novo needed to recapture the form which endeared him to the Rangers fans after signing from Dundee. And this has proved to be the case. A rare start against Falkirk has seen the wee man go on a great run of form not unlike that of the Helicopter Sunday season. Scoring twice in four games he has given the manager an easy choice when selecting a right midfielder.

So with the great run of form that these four attacking players have been in, Walter has been able to select a stable side for this first time this season. And the benefits that comes with such consistency are evident. The players are visibly developing an understanding of each other's positioning, runs and thought-processes. They are forming relationships which are impossible to create when you are only playing once every two or three games.

And lets not forget another young man who has benfited exclusively by the form of Novo and Beasley. For Steven Davis, playing on the right hand side of midfield has never been easy. A natural central midfielder, he was always going to struggle, and struggle he has. However, in recent matches he has been allowed to play in is preffered central position and even a blind man could spot the difference in his performances.

He has covered every blade of grass in the past three matches as his fabulous engine is used to its optimum strength. Alongside either McCulloch or Thomson, Steven has been able to dictate the game in an almost free role. Supporting the strikers, spreading the play and helping the defence. Everything that can be asked for a box-to-box midfielder. And it is this license to roam, in stark contrast to rigidity of the right midfeild position, which has enabled him to show that his footballing ability is second to none in Scotland.

Now, i know it is all well and good saying such things on the back of 4 impressive league wins. It could all very well change again should a loss of points at Easter Road take place. And Walter may well change the team around again. But i am confident that this resurgent form of our attacking players will continue for now.

One bad performance shouldn't result in any of them being removed from the team. That is where our inconsistency has come from. They need to be given the chance to prove they can bounce back. Competition for places is there so that will also force the fringe players into making the most of any game time which they get. The ability in our squad has always been there, but very few have ever performed to their best when used and it is to the credit of Walter Smith that certain individuals are now beginning to justify their place in the Rangers team.

Long may it continue. A New Year is forthcoming but let the old form stay.

Merry Christmas Bears.

[Gaffbear 4,096]

Walter is finally playing the system and players we have screamed at him to play for ages.

We screamed 4-4-2 with natural wide players(albeit Novo is a striker he is more adaptable than McCOOOlluch,Naismith and your having a LAFFerty).

Beasley a winger on the wing....radical eh?

Davis in midfield,whittaker dropped,Boyd starting and working his arse aff.

All bodes well for a good side

[cooper1989 0]

Very well written mate.

The only thing I would add is that there is now some bona fide competition for places. EDU coming back, Broadfoot/Whittaker etc... Has to help focus the lads.

[BRICKY1872 118]

It's heartening to know that these players are coming good at a time when we have a very real opportunity to fuck Celtic over in the league. We take full points from Hibs and Dundee Utd and they will be shitting themselves come Jan 3rd. It is actually enjoyable watching the team right now, it hasn't always been possible to say that.

[littletomlin 0]

yeah he is and we are starting to look like a good team and the team that was fielded a month ago looks a shadow of what we are now well done smith and the team

[Poetry_In_Blue 1,043]

As has been said many times, we will never know why the players were performing like they were, we could all theorise on that till the cows came home, but will never know, at the end of the day these are the players that won us the league last season so they should have been playing better, and during pre-season it looked like they were going to capture that sort of form straight away, unfortunately it didn't happen.

Luckily, at a very important and difficult time of the season the players are starting to find their form and hopefully they will go from strength to strength and be 7 points at least in front of Celtic after the 3rd of January.

[Emerson 2]

Its great how its all looking rosey just now, but bear in mind our defeat to Aberdeen was only our THIRD defeat this year. What is on the park has been an improvement granted, but overall the results from the past 12 months have been fantastic. Indeed it was winning 8 from 9 which saw us crowned champions. I just dont think its fair to say we have clicked 'all of a sudden'.

[Ryan_1 1,136]

Tin-hat on.

Any manager worth their salt, would be capable of guiding us to the title. Really good managers can win the title and have a good run in Europe. Walter just doesn't 'have it' anymore, IMO.

He is though, doing well in the league and hopefully it will continue until the end of the season. After that hopefully we can move on, and find a really good manager, who can give us the title and to at least challenge in Europe!

[outlaw69uk 123]

It has been discussed at length over the last couple of days as to why our results and performances have suddenly shot to the dizzying heights we never thought possible from this crop of players. Everything from team selection and tactics to player incentives and even McCoist running the team have been put forward as possible reasons.

But i feel the reason is very simple. Walter is finally getting the best from his players.

Why this has suddenly become the case only the coaching staff and the players themselves can possible know, but all that matters is these players are producing some of their best performances in a Rangers shirt at the moment. And with a most arduous run of games on the horizon it couldn't happen at a better time.

Over the course of the first 5 months of the current campaign it has been interesting to note that Walter never fielded the same team in two consecutive matches. Players like Novo, Naismith, Lafferty, McCulloch, Miller and Beasley have all been used in almost a refined rotation system, with all of them coming in and out of the team. It was impossible to predict who the manager would play each game, aside from the defence, our most settled area of the park.

This didn't just happen because Walter liked to keep us guessing, it was because the aforementioned players couldn't sustain any level of good form when they got their chance. Lafferty and Novo especially would produce one good performance but then flatter to decieve when the got rewarded with another chance. The fans quickly get on the players backs and suddenly the manager is forced into changing his selection again. This lack of consistency in player performances is inextricably linked to the reason why there existed a similar lack of team selection consistency.

But after St Johnstone it all changed. All due to the performances of four men;

Miller - His form up until the Saints game had been very fractured. His performance in the win over Celtic, where he grabbed a brace to secure the three points was the highlight of the season, and it looked like his injury worries were hampering his performances considerably. But in the last three games he has scored 4 goals and produced the type of energetic and hustling displays that earned Kenny another chance at Rangers. He seems to save his best for the big games and there is no shortage of those on the horizon. Hopefully he can sustain his goal-scoring run for a while longer.

Boyd - The goal machine was always widely criticised for his lack of involvement in the game and his poor technical ability. These criticisms were certainly not based on nothing, and Boyd himself and Walter would have been well aware of this. This is an aspect of his game which has drastically improved recently as the big hitman has contributed more and more to the general play of the team, and has even provided assists for his teammates. All this without dampening his incredible ability to put the ball in the net too. Just working towards a new contract? Maybe. But he is undoubtedly one of the first names on the teamsheet and due to his performances of late, Boyd deserves to be.

Beasley - 3 weeks ago he was a forgotten man at Ibrox, a forlorn figure just waiting for the exit door to open and release him from the frustration endured during his Rangers career. Talk of him leaving last summer was rife and a proposed move to Shalke was only halted at the last minute due to a problem with wages at the German side. Yet here he is after his third consecutive start, three dynamic performances and two superb goals to boot. No footballing guru could have predicted the dramatic turnaroun for Beasley in the last three games. A good display as a substitute against Falkirk earned him a starting place when St Johnstone came to Ibrox, and the little American hasn't looked back. A thrilling display of pace and trickery meant he kept his place for the trip to Tannadice, where once again stunned the Rangers support with another memorable performance, scoring one of the goals of the season in the process. This continued in the 6-1 demolition of Motherwell and Beasley was once again on the scoresheet.

What a turnaround!!

With the World Cup in the summer the American internationalist is beginning to justify a place in his national side as well as a Rangers side on great form.

Novo - Any good form has eluded our beloved Nacho for most of this season and last as he struggled to make an impact on matches and has been used sparingly by Walter. 20 minute cameo appearences have been all that the fiesty Spaniard could manage recently. It has been said by many that an extended run in the team is what Novo needed to recapture the form which endeared him to the Rangers fans after signing from Dundee. And this has proved to be the case. A rare start against Falkirk has seen the wee man go on a great run of form not unlike that of the Helicopter Sunday season. Scoring twice in four games he has given the manager an easy choice when selecting a right midfielder.

So with the great run of form that these four attacking players have been in, Walter has been able to select a stable side for this first time this season. And the benefits that comes with such consistency are evident. The players are visibly developing an understanding of each other's positioning, runs and thought-processes. They are forming relationships which are impossible to create when you are only playing once every two or three games.

And lets not forget another young man who has benfited exclusively by the form of Novo and Beasley. For Steven Davis, playing on the right hand side of midfield has never been easy. A natural central midfielder, he was always going to struggle, and struggle he has. However, in recent matches he has been allowed to play in is preffered central position and even a blind man could spot the difference in his performances.

He has covered every blade of grass in the past three matches as his fabulous engine is used to its optimum strength. Alongside either McCulloch or Thomson, Steven has been able to dictate the game in an almost free role. Supporting the strikers, spreading the play and helping the defence. Everything that can be asked for a box-to-box midfielder. And it is this license to roam, in stark contrast to rigidity of the right midfeild position, which has enabled him to show that his footballing ability is second to none in Scotland.

Now, i know it is all well and good saying such things on the back of 4 impressive league wins. It could all very well change again should a loss of points at Easter Road take place. And Walter may well change the team around again. But i am confident that this resurgent form of our attacking players will continue for now.

One bad performance shouldn't result in any of them being removed from the team. That is where our inconsistency has come from. They need to be given the chance to prove they can bounce back. Competition for places is there so that will also force the fringe players into making the most of any game time which they get. The ability in our squad has always been there, but very few have ever performed to their best when used and it is to the credit of Walter Smith that certain individuals are now beginning to justify their place in the Rangers team.

Long may it continue. A New Year is forthcoming but let the old form stay.

Merry Christmas Bears.

top stuff

I would add Broadfot into the equation, he seems to have shored up the right hand side quite a lot since he came back

[simplythebest 11,453]

We've had good runs of results and performances under Smith before in his second spell, the difference this time is that it needs to be maintained for a good length of time.

[davie1689 1]

great post

[TexasGers 96]

Good post,

Many factors have contributed to our recent uptick in form and performances, we have guys probably fighting for new contracts, fighting for national team spots, fighting to be a starter rather than a sub, and Walter being more willing to put out an attack minded lineup. The bottom line is that all these factors impact Rangers in a positive fashion, and long may it continue.

[keithgersbear 3,225]

Tin-hat on.

Any manager worth their salt, would be capable of guiding us to the title. Really good managers can win the title and have a good run in Europe. Walter just doesn't 'have it' anymore, IMO.

He is though, doing well in the league and hopefully it will continue until the end of the season. After that hopefully we can move on, and find a really good manager, who can give us the title and to at least challenge in Europe!

He doesn't have it anymore?

Walter for me is showing us why he is a great manager right now. Celtic are in a better situation off the field money wise and yet the performances on the pitch and table position tells us a different story. An awful lot of that is down to Walter Smith. A fantastic manager. To be perfectly honest, we should be looking at 3 in a row right now. Got completely shafted in 2008 but that's life.

[Guest SandyWaTp]

Agree with everything you say mate

Good read!

[nvager 498]

I agree with a lot of what the OP says, but would add:

After the Aberdeen game the players had a meeting themselves and agreed they were not doing enough on the park. They decided that they needed to put more into the game by closing down the opposition all over the park and their own movement off the ball etc. Both KB and KM have said this and say this is the reason for the recent turn-around in form. This combined with WS at long last playing a balanced team with width and pace on the wing. Moving Davis inside and Broadfoot replacing Whittaker.

I feel that in this form we can beat anyonein the SPL. Walter deserves credit but also criticism for not playing more attacking football with wingers and pace much earlier in the season. To be fair to him though both Novo and Beasley had been injured and took a fair bit of time to recover their fitness and confidence. A McCulloch-Naismith central midfield pairing vs Aberdeen was not a good choice.

Like everyone else I am now looking forward to some more great football and even better results.

[Otis 1]

That pretty well sums it up for me.

[bigalan1964 0]

after the aberdeen defeat the players got slaughtered in the press for being wimps

by 2 great gers legends gough and hateley and rightly so

the players didnt like what they read and nor did smith

but in all honesty i think it was the best thing to happen

as we can all see the diffrence when they play and fight for each other

well said gough and hateley yous have really fired them up

[djgazbcm 55]

if only RM could take the plaudits for our turnaround ,but most, if not all forums were of the same opinion probably ,just unbelievable it took so long for WS to realise,otherwise we may still be in the CL by playing as positive as we are just now ,JUST A MINOR RANT guys,,WATP

[mannan 0]

turnaround? two good games? lets not get carried away ffs

we would ALWAYS expect 3 points at home to motherwell!!!!! 6 goals is a nice bonus agreed

the utd result midweek was more like it, but i think its far to early to pass judgement

maybe had he done this against that mob we got pumped off 4-1 at home in europe then we might have got a result and would still be lookin forward to europe in 2010

[djgazbcm 55]

turnaround? two good games? lets not get carried away ffs

we would ALWAYS expect 3 points at home to motherwell!!!!! 6 goals is a nice bonus agreed

the utd result midweek was more like it, but i think its far to early to pass judgement

maybe had he done this against that mob we got pumped off 4-1 at home in europe then we might have got a result and would still be lookin forward to europe in 2010

agree mate but its a big IMPROVEMENT albeit a bit late for CL but we are going in the right direction now ..

[mannan 0]

turnaround? two good games? lets not get carried away ffs

we would ALWAYS expect 3 points at home to motherwell!!!!! 6 goals is a nice bonus agreed

the utd result midweek was more like it, but i think its far to early to pass judgement

maybe had he done this against that mob we got pumped off 4-1 at home in europe then we might have got a result and would still be lookin forward to europe in 2010

agree mate but its a big IMPROVEMENT albeit a bit late for CL but we are going in the right direction now ..

given the group i think 3rd was very achieveable

[BlueIsTheColour 35]

turnaround? two good games? lets not get carried away ffs

we would ALWAYS expect 3 points at home to motherwell!!!!! 6 goals is a nice bonus agreed

the utd result midweek was more like it, but i think its far to early to pass judgement

maybe had he done this against that mob we got pumped off 4-1 at home in europe then we might have got a result and would still be lookin forward to europe in 2010

Not getting carried away in the slightest. But the fact remains that in our last 4 games we have scored 15 goals and conceded two, our best run of games this season. We have also produced 4 extremely efficient and exciting performances too.

There is nothing wrong with acknowledging the fact that the team is playing the best football of the season and we have been therefore able to keep a consisten team selection. Which was the undoubted problem before.

I am fully aware of how quickly that can all change.

[keithgersbear 3,225]

I think what sums it up is for me we can play any sort of style. Tough football, attractive football. We can grind out results when we need to. Can that other mob? I don't think they can.

[cooper1989 0]

Right now, I can't wait for (yet) another crack at the CL. I feel that good about our side at the moment.

There's no doubt that this is a collective turn around -- and NVA is 1000% right. The players AND Walter had a good man to man discussion about work ethic etc... Say what you will about Wattie, but he's one of the best 'man managers' around.

Credit to everyone -- even the Tea lady ffs. All doing the biz.

[clelandhattrick 8]

We could really put a run together if we win our next 3 league games, once we're past Celtic we have a fairly easy run of games. Also we have the Scottish Cup third round and League Cup semi to come.

By the time we face Celtic on the 28th of February we could looking at a fairly epic unbeaten run in three competitions.

Or we lose to Hibs on Sunday and we're in crisis again. Whatever!