Guest 90minsofmadness Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 http://thegers.info/2009/07/07/next-season-for-rangers/ Could I ask for your opinions on this piece, it the first time I've written anything and would appreciate all comments. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete 2,499 Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 Next Season for Rangers Alistair Gourlay 07/07/09 As we are well into the summer with little transfer activity happening at Ibrox it will be interesting to see how we shape up for the coming season. The current management team will stay put despite recently Smith admitting he considered his future for after winning the league. He has built a capable young squad and it made sense for him to stay on for a further year, in this financial climate it would have been tough to replace him with a more assured candidate and McCoist is not experienced enough to take over from him at this stage. We only have to look across the city at the candidates Celtic were linked with to see there are not a lot of proven managers out there to fill the position. Smith has always delivered results since his re-arrival despite his overly defensive tactics and some strange team selection. Reliability is something that he obviously respects in a players character and this has lead to players like Dailly, Weir and McCulloch getting a lot more game time last season than most fans would have wanted and expected at the beginning of the season. At the back it is clear that we need a replacement for Weir, as fantastic a job as he has done for us he cannot go on forever. At 39 winning his first league medal and as captain was a terrific achievement for him, what makes it more amazing is that he played the most games out of anyone in our squad. This shows he is worth his year extension and you must admire the attitude and desire of the man. A no nonsense type defender will have to be brought in. Despite his effort Broadfoot is no better than backup in any position he plays. As highly rated as Danny Wilson is he is still too young and inexperienced to fully command a first team slot although I would hope he could get a few run outs against lesser opposition next year, preferably with Weir alongside him keeping him on his toes. We have been linked to Tonel and he would fit the bill in terms of playing style but the price tag means we will have to wait to sell before bringing someone in. The rest of the defence picks itself so long as Whittaker keeps up his late season form and Papac and Bougherra stay clear of injuries. There is a lack of depth there but we must not revert back to resigning Dailly. He is simply not good enough to play for the Rangers. McGregor and Alexander are both capable keepers and if McGregor stays then they will continue to fight for number 1 position. An unusual scenario has popped up in midfield where we look to have an excellent choice of first team players. Should Ferguson leave we will still be left with Davis, Thomson, Edu and Mendes to fight for places. There is a chance where all four might play together, especially in Europe where we are likely to continue with our defensive 4-5-1 formation. Smith seems happy with playing Davis on the right no matter the formation so the central positions will be fought over between the other three. Similar to last season when Ferguson was injured it left Mendes and Thomson to start the season together. This time it looks as if Edu will miss the first month or two, which is a shame for the lad as he put together a terrific run of performances at the end of the season and will give the others a fight when he does make his return. The most interesting position to be filled will be the left hand side, it was a problem for most of last season as might continue to be. Novo, Lafferty, Naismith, Fleck, Beasley and Adam all had a chance to make that position their own but couldn�t quite make the adjustment. One thing this does bring is competition between the forwards for that spot, it means that if one player isn�t working in a certain game then a change of personnel might be all that is needed. It seems Adam will leave but with Aaron staying despite the wishes of his club Valencia another option is there. It�s nice to see another Spaniard taking our club to his heart as has been done before him. This leaves us to our forwards which on last years for when playing two up front it picks itself. Miller, leaving aside personal opinions about the guy himself, was a very useful addition to our team last year. Most of our quick breaking attacks will involve him and Steven Davis. We know he lacks a finishing touch when he has too much time to think but that�s where his strike partner comes into play. Kris Boyd equals goals, it�s that simple. We can hope and expect his improved work rate at periods of last season will continue but so long as he is scoring then most will be happy. If his work rate does not continue to improve then we will more than likely see him continue to sulking on European games and Old Firm derbies and rightly so. I would expect that the players who I have mentioned fighting for the left wing spot will also be looking to establish themselves in their more natural forward position, especially Lafferty who looked very promising when he did get a chance up front. To another eventful season and hopefully another championship and matching the big dogs in the Champions League. Barney Gumble Excellent piece. The only thing i found wrong was the exert below, it sounds a bit double Dutch to me. The current management team will stay put despite recently Smith admitting he considered his future for after winning the league. I think it should have been: The current management team will stay put despite Smith recently admitting he considered his future after winning the league. A small piece in a good story. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 90minsofmadness Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 Cheers bud, yeah perhaps the English could be better there. I also spelt led - lead. *doh* 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete 2,499 Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 Cheers bud, yeah perhaps the English could be better there. I also spelt led - lead. *doh* I said after my own post last week,it is amazing how you can read something 20 times, but only after you post it do you see the mistakes. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zappa 0 Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 There's a few commas missed here and there, but other than that, the main thing I noticed was this sentence:- This leaves us to our forwards which on last years for when playing two up front it picks itself. IMO, it would read better as:- "This brings me to our forwards, which based on last year's performances when we were playing two up front, practically picks itself." Good stuff mate. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gribz 972 Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 I think 90MOM was looking for comments rather than a spell check But yeah, good piece that I dont disagree with. I just wonder where our width is going to come from on both sides next season. Full backs are full backs and we shouldnt rely on them getting forward in the attacks everytime. Hutton was a different class and was our best attacker before going to Spurs but Whittaker and Papac dont have that ability. But once again its the midfield wide areas concerning me. Steven Davis will likely be first choice RM from the off next season but he is better as an inside right or centre midfielder. Id rather we signed a natural winger if possible. It all depends on what formation WS plays though. If its a 4-4-2 then we need a wide player. but if we go with 4-3-3 that Frankie's thread last week suggested, then we currently have the personnel to play that. 4-3-3 takes 3 central midfielders (we have Davis, thomson, Mendes and Edu to start with) and 3 forwards and its the forwards who provide a bit of width - Lafferty, Miller and Novo are all mobile enough to do that. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zappa 0 Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 I think 90MOM was looking for comments rather than a spell check No idea what your point is, as neither Pete or myself commented on spelling. We both just tried to help with re-phrasing sentences that didn't make sense in English. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frankie 8,696 Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 Apart from the odd spelling/grammatical issue (which affects us all!), it's a good piece mate. The bit about Weir could be reworded a bit better IMO but overall its a balanced positive discussion worthy of reading by most bears! 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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