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A week is a long time in football so a lot has happened since my last match preview last month ahead of the Stranraer game. In that preview I was extremely complimentary of the players given our strong league position tucked in behind Celtic with a game in hand. I discussed our points tally improvement as well as progress made in terms of goals scored and conceded. Importantly I also discussed the character of the team with what seemed an improved belief in the squad when it came to adversity. Winning at Parkhead at the end of 2019 was clearly evidence of that after disappointment at Hampden. Unfortunately, since then we've went backwards in frustrating style: losing to Hearts and drawing at home to Aberdeen, meaning we've dropped five points in six days, falling behind Celtic again and minimising any supposed title challenge in short order. The manager has since spoken of 'missing a spark' and he's right. Suffice to say we've not played well in any of our five games in the new year and although we won our first three, unconvincing and functional were as good any 'praise' got. As such, it wasn't a huge surprise that we struggled against Hearts and Aberdeen: two physical outfits that usually cause us problems. The reasons for this loss of form are less easy to put a finger on. Yes, we've been without a combination of key players since the winter break: Morelos was suspended for three matches, Tavernier has been injured for all five and Ryan Jack has missed the better part of two games. Arguments can be made for the likes of Goldson, Davis and Barisic but, in my opinion, the three that have been unavailable are our three best players and any team would miss such. Even worse is that those you'd expect to step up such as Davis, Arfield and Kent haven't played well recently either whilst no-one else in the team (aside from perhaps McGregor and Goldson) have found the level of form they had towards the end of last year. All things considered, when you're not sure of an answer, the simplest solution is best so any lack of quality is demonstrably down to the loss of key players: either via their unavailability or just a loss of their form generally. Yet other worries also persist. Our preferred 4-3-2-1 system has worked well for the last nine months or so. Within this setup our football is good to watch and usually played at a high tempo with various players capable of creating or score goals; especially with the focal point of Morelos. However, when the tempo is missing and when teams pack their defensive areas, we can struggle and that has been fairly obvious in recent weeks. Yes, aside from the Hearts game, we've still dominated most of the matches (and should do so at Ibrox in any case) but we have failed to reliably breach defensive setups when faced by them. Opposition sides haven't necessarily parked the bus per se but they're working very hard across medium blocks and in half-spaces to stifle our creative outlets. Davis becomes anonymous, Kent can't find space, Kamara continually turns back, Defoe isn't physical enough and our full-backs are closed down very quickly too. Indeed, it's often left to the centre halves to make the play and you'll even find any opposition attacker trying to limit Goldson's use of the ball. Quite simply teams aren't giving us the oxygen to breath and we don't have the imagination to combat this. So much so that, for the first time in a fairly long period of time, we changed system at least twice in our most recent match against Aberdeen. First of all, Sheyi Ojo was brought on to play more as an orthodox winger as opposed to one of the 'double tens' we usually deploy. That didn't work so we even tried a 3-5-2 later in the game with two men up front and new signing Ianis Hagi trying to play vertically from deeper positions; again without success as Aberdeen sat deeper and deeper towards the final whistle. This shows finding the missing spark isn't necessarily as simple as changing the formation, though it can be argued without being more flexible across more games, subtle changes won't work when used 'off the cuff' or when under pressure. And that last word is proving interesting as well. I mentioned character above and, as much as it's difficult to suggest this team lacks it (see our December results), in certain positions we do seem to lack belief. Not necessarily when reacting to tricky situations but when put under pressure ourselves. For example, we've done very well in Europe this season with little expectation at the start of the group stage. However, as soon as we were expected to qualify, our form wasn't quite as good. Similarly, when behind Celtic in the league, we seem to tick along fairly well but as soon as we become de facto favourites, we look lost. We couldn't beat a ten man Celtic side in the League Cup Final and twice this season we lost league title initiative almost as quickly as we grabbed it. That should interest Steven Gerrard and any sports psychologist. A final valid point, and I don't need to wear tin foil whilst making it thanks to Rick Roberts' fine polemic on the site yesterday, is the effect of the officials. A common sight this season has been opposition teams attempting to disrupt games right from the first whistle. Not only do we see a large number of niggly, cynical fouls made throughout games but time wasted as well. Bizarrely, officials don't seem keen to clamp down on either of these so we find a general lack of rhythm to our matches, decreasing our tempo, increasing player knocks and generally stopping us playing our usual game. OK, it's hardly a scientific answer but it is a factor nonetheless and one the manager and players can't really account for - or even change. All the above should represent food for thought for Gerrard when attempting to find our spark. There's no doubt in my mind losing our three best players has affected us most of all and contributed more than anything else to our loss of momentum. Having James Tavernier back for the visit of Hibs will help and getting Alfredo Morelos' mind back on the job will be key to any aspirations of success we have. Yes, Ryan Jack remains injured but good sides should be able to cope with that so Gerrard and his coaching team will be eager to prove that on Wednesday night. After all player form is partially their responsibility with team selection, the system(s) used and how we deal with gamesmanship all part of how players will perform. With all that in mind, I'm hoping for a proper reaction at Ibrox tomorrow and I suspect we'll see some changes to reflect that. Tav should return to the starting XI and I think the likes of Katic and Kamara would benefit from a rest too. Kamberi will miss the next two games of course but having Hagi and Stewart available should help creatively if Hibs fancy playing for a point. Meanwhile, the combination of Aribo, Arfield and Hagi allows for flexibility in attack with all three capable of drifting wide and supporting the attack or making passes from deeper positions if required. We certainly have plenty of options so finding a spark needn't be as complicated as at first glance. If only football was as simple as that... Possible team (4-3-2-1):

Sorry seems to be the hardest word? It's Sad, so sad(so sad) It's a sad, sad situation and it's getting more and more absurd The above three lines are from the chorus of a Taupin/John composition. They will be most familiar to current Sellik season ticket holder, Graham Spiers. Today, Graham took to social media to lend support to Michael Stewart's bizarre performance on BBC Radio Scotland's midweek, 'Sportsound' show. Paraphrasing, Graham believes there exists an exciting opportunity for a hip, young gunslinging PR Guru at Ibrox, the current incumbent with 40 years of experience is past it. Maybe, Elton John will put the necessary music to the burgeoning narrative? This will allow ra Bhoy in Corduroy to appear live on TV for a third time, fingering his organ through a medley of Elton melodies. Tonight's 'Sportsound' opened with the following : "We apolgise to James Traynor for the discussion on Sportsound last night. It was not fair and balanced and he did not have the opportunity to respond and on this occasion we did not adhere to our Editorial values and standards. We have reminded those concerned of their responsibilities to follow our guidelines whilst working for the BBC". Last night, Mikey went Tonto. PQ CSC don't care what the animals say, thus Michael was pitching for his dream job, Minister for Sport in an independent Scotland. He queried Morelos being interviewed by SKY on Friday, and the piece not being aired until Monday. This ran interference on Sunday's revelation on the tamperer of the Columbian's car being revealed as a being employed by Alfie's wife. He blamed this situation on James Traynor. Further, James Traynor is a dangerous man and a bully. Mikey revealed he was being accused of murder on social media because Traynor had fed the Daily Record the line about car breaks being interfered with, and this is not on. Morelos claiming racism is not on either, Mikey demanded, "show me the evidence"? Is Mikey blaming the victim, is he suggesting Alfie is a liar? We should be told. Another demand for evidence was followed by, "the difference between the Griffiths incident and the one with Morelos, was that Morelos planted his foot into McKenna's groin". Oh, and racism is unwanted in Scotland, Derek McInnes was complaining of Logan being a recipient and that's wrong too. No demand for evidence, I note. Consumed by bitterness and idiocy, Traynor got it again before widening his demands for Rangers to provide evidence of break tampering? The blunderbuss was now fully loaded and primed. Mickey leveled and went off half-cocked. Rangers do not do things the right way, They got confrontational, went to war with the council over their application to launch a Fan Zone. James Traynor was behind this too, and he asked if we knew he sent written pieces to Craig Whyte for approval before publication? Since the start of this season, Mikey was given a platform to get after Craig Levein. He also stated he agreed with the Green Brigade, particularly their political aspirations. He ridiculed Rangers supporters claims of crushing outside Rugby Park, insinuating too many Rangers fans were inside the allocated stand because of forged tickets. He was taken on by both Neil McCann and Billy Dodds after saying orange strips had no connection with Rangers. Both former Gers told him with certainty that the Advocaat Dutch period was the connection. You would think BBC Scotland should accept some responsibility? In fairness, I heard Kenny McIntyre take him on some months past for his preferred prejudice, He called him out for inconsistencies in his opinions on incidents involving Rangers players and players of other teams. McIntyre has paid for it ever since, both Cosgrove and Cowan have continually mocked his support for Rangers. The principled solidarity shown for Chris McLaughlin or Jum Spence is NOT for H-U-NS. DrStu' is occasionally garrulous, his excitement betters him. He revealed in early Autumn that Michael Stewart would be willing to take on the job as Compliance Officer, but only if he was guaranteed anonymity. Although BBC Scotland has apologised to Traynor, there is no apology to Rangers or Rangers supporters. Further, Michael Stewart has not apologised to anyone. The podcast of the show is not available on BBC Scotland and the Daily Record has asked for an apology too. The fall out will continue because for Mikey, SORRY seems to be the hardest word.

So the club have got an apology after one attack on Traynor, but nothing on the continuous xenophobic and racist attacks on Morelos? Hmm. The club's priorities are all wrong.

He does what he's paid to do the problem lays not with him but his employers and in particular the absentee Chairman who I'm informed over and over again just doesn't get the PR angle.

One thing I'm sure everyone will agree about is Celtc being good at cover-ups.

its a rule that governs all loans these days. Neither will play.

I'll be really surprised if too many people respond to this. It's such a shame, but this board is losing the goodwill of the fans because it refuses to take us seriously. We want action against those that seek to damage our club and no more false promises (about statements) or dignified silence.

The worst part is how the SFA, SPFL,Scottish government, Scottish gutter press and Scottish public, all aid the cover up!

A periodic reminder that the compliance process is deeply flawed and not for purpose.

Could only be McGregor I think, very few others even came close to pass marks. Goldson perhaps.

Irrespective of what happened after the initial statement, the failure to follow up on it as stated is unforgivable. The expectation of a further communication was of the club’s making alone and was directed at the support. Even if it was only to say “nothing to report”, the failure to follow up only serves to reinforce the growing opinion that the management of the club is weak and it’s respect for the fans is very thin indeed. Just not good enough.

"My son and my daughter, all the times, when Liverpool win in the last minutes, they ask me, 'How lucky, how lucky they are'. I said at the time, 'It's not lucky'," Guardiola explained. What Liverpool has done this season and last season many, many times is because they have this incredible quality and incredible talent to fight to the end. That's why I say to my players – not just my son and daughter – that is not lucky. If it happens once or twice, yes, but it happened maybe 10 or 12 or 14 times"

Many thanks to @Rick Roberts for another well argued piece!

The food has been atrocious at Ibrox for decades. Ive never seen a fan survey despite the common knowledge of how poor it is. Eat that rubbish, give us a fiver and shut it.

What’s this shite about soliciting fan feedback when years of supporting this club has shown so clearly that the last people that will ever be listened to are the fans. Dear SLO, fuck off and waste someone else’s time.

Twitter mate. There was a video of it, some Tims piled in saying "you can't tell what he's saying" and a Celtic ST holder replied saying he has his ST in that section and there was no doubt that Morelos was subjected to racist abuse. Of course, other Tim fans jumped down his throat and drowned him out

Twas very melee mouthed. It appears they've "reminded" him of their policy or something along those lines. Promotion beckons.

The board are more likely to take action against Rangers supporters for over-celebrating a goal than they are to take the Lawwell puppets in the press to task.

Aye, but they did. Even if Morelos never said it, there is absolutely no doubt that someone from the stands shouted "black bastard" at Morelos - and one of their own ST holders confirmed it.

That about sums Rangers up for me just now! pay your money, sit down & shut up!

Turn up, buy stuff, behave like good little boys, keep your opinions to yourselves and go home. Yadda, yadda, yadda...

Apart from qualifying from the EL group stages, this is rapidly turning into another season to forget.

They've no shame that lot. One of their own ST holders admitted to hearing racist comments aimed at Morelos in the last OF.

Its unfortunate that its taken some poor performances to spark a little experimentation by the management team. We are now in the midst of a bad run and desperately seeking that missing spark, whilst having no (or next to no) previous game time using different formations, and with many of the fringe players in the squad lacking competitive minutes. All of which means that when we lose some of our key players, we lose momentum and look vulnerable to the physicality and time-wasting tactics seen notably in our last two fixtures. Some lessons there for Gerrard to reflect on. He's shown that his management group are reflective and learn from their experiences. Lets hope they address this slump quickly. For me the way to do that is to transcend some of the issues we have from a player/technical standpoint by engendering a siege mentality in the dressing room. No-one likes us, we don't care. The refs are against us, the press wont do us any favours, and forget expecting fairness from the SFA/SPFL. Put newspaper clippings up in the dressing room. Make sure all the players know exactly what all the no-marks in the game are saying about us/them. Then its time for the sleeves to be rolled up and for some blood and thunder, high energy tilts from the first whistle. Put games to bed, then make full use of subs as early as possible to protect our best players and challenge the squad to give the manager selection headaches.

@BEARGER if you take out the mobile part of the tweet's address, it will render properly within the forum software (see above)...

Totally agree with this. They were quick enough to get involved in 2012 and involve the fans too

On a sidenote, you also do wonder why there is such a deafening silence from all other teams. Not least when they have suffered the rubbish refs make of games of these respective teams vs the Scum.

Remember this from the club on 18th January? Anyone know which weekend they were talking about...... "RANGERS is astounded by the notices of complaint issued by the SFA. It is concerning that it seems the governing body is seeking to hold Rangers to a different and more stringent code of conduct than that applied to others, with unprecedented charges being levied against the Club. Rangers fans can be assured that it is our firm intention to resist the charges in the most robust manner possible. Rangers will make further comment after the weekend."

That’s what I mean. No use lording it over celtic if we don’t absolutely hammer the dross.

On Saturday eve I wondered what father Dallas might have said to his son. If we have a CO to hare after players, why do the SFA or the clubs do not "invent" a position to go after referees if they do not see ( ignore important things, disregard the rulebook or flash cards that are not validated. As it stands, the quality and standard is beyond joke and there is apparently no way to increase it. You actually do wonder whether there is a working board of referees or the like, who check out the individual p(h)erformances?

Physicality and breaking up the rhythm of play are both tactics I think we will experience more and more as the season progresses unless we match up and start putting teams to the sword. My worry is that Hearts and now Aberdeen have set the template that others will follow. And when you have a compliant officer and meek officials who seem to be influenced by their own shadow, I fear the worst unless we seriously buck up our ideas and develop a siege mentality as a club, on all fronts.

My knowledge of Spanish can be reduced to my Latin lectures I had while at university ... quite some time ago. But I reckon someone over on FF will have a clue or two?

No idea about the production but it seems like amateur hour regardless... With everything that has happened to Morelos recently, conducting an important interview openly and accurately was the least fans (and the player himself) should expect. I really don't know how we can get something so wrong; whether or not Sky are responsible for the production or not.

The sheep are a 'diddy' club and just can't stand their status. They obsess over Rangers night and day trying to conjure up a rivalry that doesn't exist. We have only one rival and it isn't them. Their diddy club status was in full view both on Saturday and following the last game at the sheep pen, both draws. Draws they celebrated like a victories while we on he other hand treat this one in particular like a defeat. That's the difference between Rangers and a diddy club. A draw feels like a defeat while it's akin to a cup final win for them.

Fouls committed in league games this season. Top two by a considerable distance are the two we have most recently played.

Remember the Scottish cup game v the sheep at Ibrox last season? Eight of their outfield players were booked for a final stat of 80% of the entire outfield booked. It's obvious to everyone that this is a strategy which amounts to one gets booked he then passes the baton to someone else to be booked. Fouling is illegal and this is a clear pre-planned tactic of deliberate fouling to prevent a technically superior side playing any football. Referees have to see from the outset that this is happening and be producing those cards a lot quicker letting them know that you're not going to be doing this. Referee of that game was Kevin Clancy.

It's embarrassing how the club stay silent on this, it almost makes them complicit!!

This just happens to be what reminded me of Paolo Maldini.

Last week I was contacted by a Davie O’Connor who asked to meet me at Ibrox before last Saturday’s match in order to make a donation to the Restoration Project. Davie and his wife donated the incredible sum of £150 which came from them selling their season tickets for a recent Old Firm fixture and the following home match just in order to help the Restoration of Rangers Graves Project. I’d like to thank them sincerely for their overwhelming generosity and kindness. Thank you. ? ?. If you’d like to donate to the Restoration of Rangers Graves please do so here on our website. https://www.thefounderstrail.co.uk/the-restoration-of-range…

Hagi? Not Kent? Are you feeling OK?