johnnyk

I don't think we're any better off either. Edu has been the best of the three and even he's not been that great but gives his all at least and as you say has been scoring goals. Mendes and Davis have IMO been well short of form for months......

aye our midfield has been superb hasn't it

SASA PAPAC should be fit for the SPL title run-in after he was assessed by the club's medical staff this morning. The Bosnian defender came off 13 minutes from the end of yesterday's 3-2 win over Hibernian at Easter Road with a knee problem. After the game there were fears he had sustained ligament damage and had that proved to be the case, his season would be over. But after reporting to Murray Park this morning, he is walking normally has been told he could be back in training again later this week. Papac is suspended for Saturday's Scottish Cup semi-final with St Mirren in any case so he has time on his side and is likely to be in contention to play Hearts on May 3. Assistant Ally McCoist said: "The worst scenario would have been that Sasa had ligament damage and that would have been a major concern if that was the case. "But we're optimistic it's stiffness more than anything and hopefully he'll be okay. He has been seeing the physio this morning and we're hoping the problem isn't too serious. "Sasa hasn't had his troubles to seek lately after he needed stitches in his foot against St Mirren a couple of weeks ago. "Now he has a knee knock but he's a hardy soul and we're keeping our fingers crossed for him." http://www.rangers.premiumtv.co.uk/page/News/NewsDetail/0,,5~1633594,00.html

Sol Bamba does his job well, not any worse than what we have for that position IMO......not any better either though.....

Football bosses plan two Premier Leagues in revolution of the English game Plans for a Premier League second division that would revolutionise English football have been drawn up. Boltonââ?¬â?¢s Phil Gartside, one of the longest-serving chairmen in the top flight and an influential member of the Football Associationââ?¬â?¢s board, has put together a blueprint that is being circulated among key figures within the game. They include the current Premier League chairman Dave Richards, who sees merit in the proposals. Sunday Mirror Sport has been given a full briefing on the document, which is being backed by at least seven Premier League clubs as well as key Football League clubs who are keen to be part of the new breakaway. A prominent Championship chairman, whose club have been in the Premier League, said: ââ?¬Å?Given the severe financial restraints in the Football League it would be madness not to consider the proposals. ââ?¬Å?The considerable wealth of Premier League clubs shows no sign of subsiding. ââ?¬Å?The Football League clubs are poor by comparison.ââ?¬Â Gartsideââ?¬â?¢s blueprint proposes two Premier League divisions, each of 18 teams. There would be promotion and relegation of two clubs between the divisions. There would also be one club relegated from Premier League 2 to be replaced by a club from the Football League. Perhaps most controversial of all is the idea of inviting two Scottish clubs to join Premier League 2. The clubs are not named but would be Glasgow giants Rangers and Celtic. In the past, both Scottish clubs have expressed a wish to join the English Premier League bandwagon. With the top flight reduced from 20 clubs, thereââ?¬â?¢s also a proposal for a winter break. And in a move that will alarm the FA and Football League - who have their own knock-out competitions ââ?¬â?? there would be the introduction of a new Premier League knock-out cup. http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/2009/04/18/no-headline-115875-21288238/

ANDY DORMAN has shot to the top of Walter Smith's summer shopping list. The Rangers manager watched the St Mirren star score a cracker against Hibs last week. Now the Ibrox club will make a �£700,000 bid for Scotland's top-scoring midfielder, who netted his 11th goal of the season against Motherwell yesterday. Dorman has a year left on his Buddies deal and is free to sign a pre-contract in six months' time. Gus MacPherson would love to keep his star player, but it's unlikely he will be able to persuade Dorman to sign a new long-term deal. And Smith wants Rangers to land him as a midfield foil for Pedro Mendes. With Barry Ferguson set to quit Ibrox, the Gers boss believes that Chester-born Dorman's energy and ability could prove invaluable. He watched Dorman in action along with No 2 Ally McCoist and coach Kenny McDowall at St Mirren Park on Monday night. A Rangers insider said: "The coaching staff have all been hugely impressed by Dorman all season. "They had a good look at him on Monday against Hibs and it certainly wasn't just his goal which caught the manager's eye." http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/scottish/scottish_sport/270891/Rangers-eye-up-Dorman-Andy-Dorman.html

he's still our best midfielder so why not play him? if we had better i would not play him either but we don't do we?

he's the only one at fault as usual in some people's eyes :yawn:

I thought you liked shopping with yer missus and lassie

DEREK FERGUSON today made an impassioned appeal for his brother Barry to be left alone to rebuild his Rangers career after the Boozegate scandal. Former Gers star Derek revealed the entire Ferguson family - including Barry's three young children and his parents - have suffered as a result of the high-profile controversy. And he is now hoping the midfielder can put the episode firmly behind him and play a part in helping the Ibrox club win the SPL. Ferguson and Allan McGregor were today both back at Murray Park having been fined and suspended for a fortnight by Gers boss Walter Smith for their actions before and after the Scotland v Iceland earlier this month. The duo were subsequently banned from international football by the SFA and had feared their careers at Rangers were finished - before Smith had a change of heart this week. Derek admitted his brother had been "childish and petulant" and deserved the severe punishment meted out to him by the club. However, he revealed he had been taken aback by the level of abuse which had been directed his way, and which had taken its toll on those closest to him. He said: "The first few days after it were quite traumatic not just for Barry, but especially for my mum and my dad. It really upset them. "The kids, too. That is what people, the papers, don't take into account - the amount of abuse the kids have had. They go to school and have pals in their football team. They have had a lot of abuse as well. "There have been a lot of discussions between Barry and I in the last two weeks and with the family as well. It has hurt us all, especially the amount of venom which has been vented his way. "We all make mistakes in whatever walk of life and Barry has had the severest punishment Rangers could have handed out. "The most hurtful thing for me is that he has lost his captaincy and his name has been tarnished." He added: "Of course he's embarrassed by his actions. What he did was childish. But we all make mistakes. The upsetting thing for me was that there were a number of ex-players who were looking to put him down. I know some players who were having a go at him. They have let themselves down as well. "He is only human. The way people have gone on it's as if he's murdered somebody. He has made a mistake, he's held his hands up and he's taken the punishment. It was childish and petulant, but we need to move on." Ferguson revealed he was pleased that Smith has opened the door for them to return to the Glasgow club. Speaking on RTV he said: "At one point, it didn't look as if it they were going to get back in. I think Walter has had a wee bit of a rethink. But I think he was right about what he did. "Even when you are on Scotland duty or at a Rangers function the players are representing Rangers as well. "But Walter has said we need to draw a line under it. I think from Walter's point of view and from the players' point of view they will do that. "It would have been easy for Barry to feel sorry for himself, to take a week off and go away to maybe Dubai or some hot country, but he didn't. He just knuckled down and has trained at his own home. "One thing is for sure, when Barry is asked to go out and represent the club in terms of playing for them again he will give his all "He has got blue blood running through his veins. There will be no problem there. "He has taken the punishment on the chin and we will wait and see if he plays again. It will be down to Walter obviously. But if given the chance he will give it his best to help Rangers get the title back. He is Rangers through and through." Publication date 17/04/09 http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/sport/display.var.2502632.0.0.php

Stupid rule but all the clubs signed up for this and knew the rules before the season started did they not!!! Tough luck!!

Was it that much of a crime? Barry has been punished the most and he won't ever captain Rangers or Scotland again and if the SFA clowns have it their way he won't play for his country again. Is that not enough?

I beat you posting something at last :fish: Aye who needs goalscorers they're overratted IMO

Pedro Mendes moved away from the best league in the world to come to Scotland and doesn't regret it for a minute. But yesterday he was left scratching his head at the inability of his fellow pros north of the border to pick a player. Not that he thinks Steven Davis, Scott Brown and Gary Caldwell - as well as himself - can't play the game. The Old Firm quartet, nominated by the PFA Scotland for their Player of the Year award, have had fine seasons and few would argue at their right to be in the shake-up. But in Mendes' mind, there is only one worthy winner of the trophy this term - the man whose goals have almost singled-handedly kept Rangers' title hopes alive. Mendes has played with and against the best in Portugal and England but has rarely seen anyone with Kris Boyd's radar for goal. In fact, he can recall lining up with only one other in possession of the same strikers' mentality and it is a guy who almost joined Rangers a decade ago. Brazilian Jardel was paraded at Ibrox but his move fell through and he ended up at Bolton before joining forces with Mendes at Porto. Now the midfielder is setting up goals for a player he believes has striking similarities with the South American. He said: "For me, Boyd would play all the time. He is a top scorer, a finisher and it is good for us that he belongs to Rangers. "It's beyond me why he hasn't been nominated. I would vote for him if I could. Improving "We had a player who came from Bolton - Jardel - who played with me at Porto. Boydy is so like him. "Sometimes Jardel would not look interested but at the right time he would be and he scored 40 goals a season at Porto. It was unbelievable. "Sometimes his touch wasn't the best but he could score every kind of goal. "It's similar with Boydy. He's got 28 at the moment and with six more games to go I don't know how many goals he can score - I hope 45 or 50. "Jardel was the same. He was a great finisher but you couldn't expect much more from him. "That's what we want from Boyd - just to score. Even so, he is improving his game very much outside the box. "If we win the league, Boydy's goals will have been the key. "There have been games in which we have struggled and suddenly Boydy has scored. "We know if we can give him a good delivery inside the box, he can finish. It's a big bonus for us." While our neighbours in the Premiership are congratulating themselves on having three clubs in the last four of the Champions League for the third year running, the Rangers midfielder couldn't be happier that he jumped Hadrian's Wall in the summer to ply his trade in the SPL. And he insists the quality of player in Scotland is much better than the league is often given credit for. Mendes, who is a member of the English PFA and didn't have a Scottish vote, went on to reel off a series of names who have impressed him - even if he did joke that his picks would have been countrymen Bruno Aguiar and Felipe Morais if he had been handed a ballot paper. He said: "I train and play with Rangers players every day and it is a pleasure to play with them. But Celtic have great players, like Nakamura and McGeady. "Then you go to Dundee United where Sandaza and Gomis are very good players and at St Mirren, Dorman is a very good player. "I would have voted for my countrymen Aguiar and Morais. Not because they are my countrymen. "Aguiar has done a fantastic job for Hearts. He is a very good player. Morais just joined Inverness in January and has been very good for them. "I also think that Falkirk are a fantastic team. They are one of the best in possession, yet they are struggling. "For me, that is a difficult one to understand because they have very good technical players but they don't score enough. "There is quality and very good players everywhere. Maybe that's why the Old Firm are dropping more points." They might be but it is making for an exciting end to the season and Mendes is loving it. In fact, the chase for the titles is the reason he gave up a good life in Portsmouth. He said: "One of the big things about playing for Rangers is that everyone expects you to win every game. In other championships, the top teams sometimes lose and it is not such a big thing. But in Scotland the pressure is there all the time. "I knew how big Rangers were and that Scottish football was more or less two teams playing for the title every season. "With the number of fans the club has, the pressure is there all the time to win and when a club like Rangers spend three years without winning the title the pressure is even greater. "The most important thing is to finish the season on a high. That's what we are aiming for. "Rangers and Celtic are dropping points more often than they usually do but it's all about how it finishes. "Sometimes you want something new - new leagues, new clubs and Rangers are such a big club. I knew it would be a big challenge for me and I made the move. I was leaving the Premiership, which is probably the best league in the world. "But it was a chance to come to a massive club and that helped me decide. I didn't ask for advice. Sometimes it is better to go with what you think rather than talk to someone. "Together with my family, we decided it would be a good move for us and I am pleased with it." Mendes will be even more pleased if he ends up with a championship medal at the end of his debut season in Scotland. The Player of the Year award would just be an added bonus, even if he thinks it should have gone to his big mate Boydy. http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/football/spl/2009/04/17/kris-boyd-is-rangers-answer-to-jardel-says-teammate-pedro-mendes-86908-21284375/

They don't see it like that though, they done nothing wrong then and are still doing nothing wrong but they keep getting picked on and victimised as usual for doing nothing wrong The SPL helped them win the league year and have also gave them many dodgy decisions this season but that's still not good enough for them The article says it was 'expected' to be the first game after the split but virtually everywhere I read said the police didn't want it on the holiday weekend which then leaves only the 2nd game which it is, makes sense to me! If it was the first game we would've missed bougherra but there would've been nothing we could've done about it and I hope and doubt we would've claimed it was biased towards the other team as they are!!

very true, we should have these staff in place already and be giving the players advice from a very young age, it's up to them to take it and i'm sure a lot will but I disagree they need to be sold if they don't want to be super fit for example. In an ideal world they would all take the good advice and be role models for the younger players but that's not going to happen........ I am not against ex players jobs(especially ones that played well for us) but will do any better than people who have qualified for these jobs?

Feeney is not any better than what we have and won't improve the squad IMO especially as we will be cutting down the first team squad size. Same goes with Brunt a decent player but not going to improve our squad........

it's always good to have our players mentioned but as long as we win trophies it doesn't really matter does it! just shows how biased the press is IMO............

totally agree, there is no one in the SPL that is head and shoulders above the rest but for me one thing Boyd does is he can score not only tap ins but can score from nothing (maybe he has to as he can't take players on )

Again I don't agree but not going to keep disagreeing with you :cheers:

For me goals count 1st as he is a striker and scoring goals is what he is paid to do, the rest of his game comes 2nd for me, that's what we have other players for IMO........... I would love him to be a better player all round but if he was i doubt he would be in the SPL..........

Bougherra has not been great every game either and has cost us goals has he not?

that's your opinion no problem, but if someone doesn't get a fair chance then we will never know. I think he has proved he can score goals and given a chance in europe IMO he would probably do the same!! I think we could have got through even if Boyd played.........

Due to the formation/tactics we played and results we got last season it's easy to say that now. He could easily have scored the goals to help us through if he did play some of these games as all he needs is a sniff of goal and he takes it. I love players who score goals and he would be my POTY.

Eddie 'the Tim' Smith