Gaffer

In an attempt to get back on topic, Gerrard did say he'd probably look to replace Candeias. I'm still hopeful we can get Kent and if we did I'm not sure we need anyone else. If we don't get Kent, I'd be concerned unless we can replace Candeias with someone else.

Surely you are not having a go at the club for focussing it's finances on putting a winning team on the park? There's no doubt that there are many competing priorities for the limited finances available. Maybe Club 1872 could take this issue up on behalf of the fans. That aside, I welcome publicity like this because we need to do all we can as a club to make it clear that any intolerance is condemned by the club. That's surely a positive thing, even if it's unlikely to result in change.

The other thing to remember is that our formation is rarely symmetrical these days. I think the reason there's confusion about whether it's 4-3-2-1 or 4-3-3 is because it's both. In the games against Marseille and St Jo's at home, we played with width on the left side and narrow on the right. We then changed this at half time to swap where the width was. We tried this against Newcastle too but they had packed the midfield so tightly (after our goal) that neither worked with width so we then went very narrow. The fact we can do this with each side operating almost independently of the other bodes we'll for us. However it requires a lot of discipline defensively, especially on the side operating wide as it's too easy to be caught on the break on that side. Newcastle spotted this and tried to play directly in behind Barisic. Thankfully for us their passing wasn't so effective but against better opposition it will be and we will have to be prepared for this.

I agree with almost all of this, but I think Ojo is more effective in the narrower formation. I'm yet to be convinced by Hastie (but it's very early for such a young player), but I actually think Jones will adapt very we'll. I like the fact he has a fierce shot on him and I'm hopeful we can benefit from that more if operates more centrally. You can see that he's been coached by us to cut inside more.

I was there and if I remember correctly both new signings scored. Is that right? And am I right in saying that the other player will be forever remembered for his horrendous miss later that season? My memory is fading but hopefully that's correct.

Ouch. They are all really strong teams. That'll take some performance both home and away to go through, but that's if we Progres past this next round first though.

You don't get a view of the near side, but furthest away corner area, but other than it's great. You are of course high up, but I like it because you can see more of the shape of the team and spot the runs of players better in my opinion. Only the very end sections of the club deck give any sort of viewing problems, but even then it's fine.

When he arrived I had never seen a player at Ibrox that could do the things he could do. What made it more entertaining was that neither had our challengers. It was about 7 or 8 games before teams had any idea what to do about him. Easily the best player to ever wear the jersey and we are so lucky to have been around for that era. I'd dearly love my kids to have the same experience of going to watch Rangers with a star player like him on show.

We played some great stuff again but a few players have reminded us how it can change if we stop concentrating. Katic can be great, but showed at their goal an example of why he was replaced last season. He made a few silly mistakes and it cost him his place in the team. Based on the last couple of games I think Edmundson has jumped ahead of him in the pecking order. Katic is a young guy though and will hopefully learn to concentrate more for the 90 minutes. Kamara has not started the season well, and although he is still good, he won't get in the team ahead of Jack on that showing. All in all though we looked good and Jones, Aribo, Arfield and Ojo are all looking great for those midfield and advanced roles. Davis at the moment is a guaranteed starter too because he dictates the play. When he went off we had no one to take over. I now can't wait for our next competitive game against Progres.

Alright smarty pants, I sure most of us older yins still call it the premier league or the ess-pee-ell. ? I'll go one further though and say we will win the treble. If we pass the ball the way we have done, I can't even see any of our challengers getting a goal.

The unlimited contract is a no brainer for me. Like you, I won't go to any away games (except occasionally in Europe) so it's a great way to keep following and supporting. The commentary is great, unlike the anti Rangers nonsense you get on the other channels, and of course all the money goes to our club. That's a win, win, win scenario if ever there was one. I know some people have criticised the commentary from Tom and others but I like it because they react the same way any fan would when we score, or if we lose a goal, or get a man sent off. I don't want to hear a Celtic fan gloat when we lose, just as I don't want to hear an Aberdeen fan silent when we score. I want the reaction from a fellow bear and that's what you get. I would say it's added a huge amount of value to my enjoyment of watching our games on TV. I'd recommend it to anyone.

I didn't realise there was a different package to the one I'm on. Like Pete, I pay a monthly sum that gives me everything. I would probably still pay £12 to watch us but that is really steep for a friendly.

After his time with us I'm sure he will have plenty of options to go to MLS or to China. However he just doesn't seem like the type to want to travel for the money. If he's enjoying his football with us I'd hope we could entice him to stay with the prospect of a coaching role because he'd be a great inspiration for the younger players.

Ok, but I wasn't claiming to be right. I was checking my understanding but it just seemed like you were claiming that this was so much worse than the previous deal and I couldn't work out why anyone would think that. We can definitely both agree that we hope we can sort this out at some point, and that it's unlikely to be sorted any time soon. At least we've got great football to enjoy in the meantime. ?

Maybe you're exaggerating for effect, but that's nowhere near as bad as where we were. I explained the tactics earlier and I'm quite happy that we continue to push this. This new board has been doing a great job on and off the park and I can't see what they've done wrong here. Our current situation with SD is about four million times (almost exactly in financial terms) better than before, and I'd expect a lot more court appearances before a conclusion is reached.

I thought I understood this but perhaps I'm wrong. Can you explain why we are in a deeper mess now? That just doesn't seem to match with my understanding of where we are now. I understand the renegotiated position but if we agree to SD's matches offer then there is no problem is there? Had we continued previously they would have continued to take 98 pence in every pound. How can the current position be worse than that? What the board has done is allowed us to create partnerships elsewhere and profit from them, albeit SD has the right to match any bid. I don't want to give them a penny so I'm quite happy for us to continue to push boundaries here, but if we gave in we are still financially MUCH better off, and in fact there's no comparison. Am I wrong?

The previous board put us in this mess. Our current board is trying to get us out of it. Don't you agree? Whichever side pays the most money to the best lawyers will normally win these encounters, but it's still an important tactic to push the boundaries, and even to knowingly breach certain terms. If this had been a short term contract the prudent thing to do would be to ride it out, but that's not the case. This has years to run so we should not be accepting the situation. This is a commonly used tactic in large businesses but that's where commerciality is key. With MA and SD, this seems personal so we will see if it has the same effect in eventually wearing him down. We don't have a choice as far as I can see because I'd certainly not want us to just stand there while he punches us in the face.

It's inevitable that he will eventually go so maybe this is an opportunity to get £20m and a clause that requires SD to drop all and any rights in our retail business. I hope he stays though because he deserves to pick up the three trophies we will win this season.

My RTV quality was excellent too. I've noticed that sometimes I also have a problem and then I do use an alternative stream, but I didn't have that problem last night. While we are talking about it, I thought Lovenkrands was very entertaining and it's clear that he and Tom have a good fun relationship. Watching Rangers with fans commentating just makes it so much more enjoyable. I'm so glad I don't have to listen to the anti Rangers commentary.

St Jo's asked if we would do that because it clashed with their preferred strip and we obliged. Under the circumstances I think it was the right thing for us to do. Having said that, I do agree that we could have worn red socks instead. I know you weren't impressed with us last night but I was and that meant I didn't care one bit about the socks we wore.

Thoroughly enjoyed watching that. This quality of football (notwithstanding the quality of opposition) is a joy to watch. Stewart, Pollster, Halliday, Edmundson and Docherty have all made a claim for a starting role with that performance.

Two up, but really should be 4 or 5. Hastie looks good but he's trying to hard and he's making mistakes with his decision making. Aribo is everywhere and just looks class. I don't think he's got into second gear yet. Pollster and Stewart are linking well and both look like they're going to compete for places. Edmundson does not look like a young player. He's huge, solid, and a great passer too. I'm really excited at how good a prospect he looks. In fact picking a centre back,pairing is going to be so tough. Maybe I'm reading him incorrectly but Morelos seemed to imply he's staying after he scored. He does something similar normally but this time it seemed more pronounced. Kamara looks a little bit too relaxed and will have to sharpen up, but oozes class when he's on it. Doc looks like he really wants a first team spot and in this showing he might just get one. This game has 8-0 written all over it. Glad that was my prediction!

Great goal from Aribo there but it was the pass that made it.

I think St Jo will be going in to this game to limit the damage to their reputation, so I expect ten men behind the ball again. This will be a good thing though because it gives us another test against the type of team that caused us problems last season. Success tonight will be a clean sheet, a few goals, and no injuries. I know we (including me) were getting carried away with the potential scoreline but it won't surprise me if they limit our chances.

We might fall out! At the risk of starting a debate, Kent is much more consistent than Candeias however there's no doubt that Candeias offers more of a goal threat. As a Kent fan I'd be very happy to have Kent come in to replace Candeias. Candeias will always be held in high regard though because of his work ethic, which is second to none.