[FT] Rangers 3 (Waghorn 5 pen, 16; Kranjcar 53) - 0 Stranraer

[der Berliner 3,563]

21 mins of highlights from Russian Rangers

 

http://rangersfc.org/index.php?dn=news&to=art&id=1920

[cooponthewing 1,139]

Nice one DB, much obliged?

[cooponthewing 1,139]

Blast!! Can't get the link to work mate??

[boabie 230]

McKay was my MOTM. The boy just seems to get better week by week.

[Darthter 542]

Another fine performance....

 

For me, the one thing that stood out was that we maintained patience. At no point were we getting "desperate" for another goal, and taking pot-shots for the sake of it. EVERY attack was patient, measured & relentless.

The players (again) were also working very well as a TEAM UNIT - a lot of movement off the ball, which allowed for short, sharp passing.....even in very crowded areas. The players don't look scared to receive the ball.

 

I thought the contributions from Barton & Krancjar were very "understated". Neither player appears to have let the "big name signing" tag go to their heads. They simply played their game, and did it VERY well.....knocking passes about without any fuss & linking both flanks well.

 

I think the Burnley game will be a good test for them & will be interesting to see how that goes. Not concerned about the league - I think we will happily dominate the majority of teams.

 

Once person I really wasn't impressed with was Chris Sutton on commentary - he really is a bitter, over-opinionated twat. Saying that Waggy shouldn't have got MotM coz the keeper should have saved the penalty, and his 2nd goal took a deflection. REgarless of how they were scored, the still count & Waggy put in an excellent shift.

[ian1964 10,625]

Niko Kranjcar: Rangers fans have suffered for a long time - now we have an obligation to strive for success

 

NIKO KRANJCAR has vowed to repay the Ibrox crowd for their backing and end their suffering by striving for Premiership success this season.

 

The Croatian has become a firm favourite with the Light Blue legions following his move from New York Cosmos this summer and is poised to play a key role for Mark Warburton’s side in the coming months.

 

Kranjcar got his first goal for the Gers in the 3-0 win over Stranraer on Monday night as the champions rounded off their Group F schedule with a fourth successive win.

 

Now the 31-year-old has set his sights on the top flight crown as Rangers prepare for a crack at the Premiership once again this term.

 

Kranjcar said: “It is a great way to play football, it is in my opinion the way football is supposed to be played.

 

“I am really happy I joined this football club and I hope we have an unforgettable season. I think we have the quality to do it.

 

“We need to improve and prove ourselves every day in every training session and every game and I am sure we will do that.

 

“It is a great bunch of lads, great management staff, backroom staff and a fantastic football club with a fantastic fan base and a foundation to bring Rangers back where it belongs.

 

“I must be thankful. I have felt the appreciation from the first game at Motherwell, although I only played for half an hour.

 

“Obviously I am thankful for the way that they have treated me since I came [here]. But it is also a massive obligation to absolutely give everything for this football club.

 

“I think every single player in this dressing room feels the same.

 

“The people, the fans of this football club have suffered for a long time unfortunately and they deserve nothing less from us than 100 per cent commitment to achieve the goal that we have set out for ourselves and that is winning the championship.

 

“I have no doubt in my mind that we will do absolutely everything we can to achieve it.”

 

After catching the eye on his debut against Motherwell at Fir Park, Kranjcar has steadily built up his fitness ahead of the new campaign.

 

He got his first 90 minutes under his belt as he strolled through the Betfred Cup tie at Ibrox on Monday night.

 

And the 31-year-old was pleased to mark the occasion with his first goal in Light Blue as the countdown continues to the big kick-off.

 

“It was nice, it was a nice feeling [to score],” he told RangersTV.

 

“It was great to win again and great to get 90 minutes under my belt. It can always be better but we have done the job and we should be happy with ourselves.

 

“There are some things we need to improve but a lot of good things that we need to build on. We are looking forward to the season.

 

“I am getting there. I am happy with how everything is progressing.

 

“Come the start of the season I am sure I will be in the best shape possible, and throughout the season as well.

 

“As a team, we play some great stuff, we create a lot of chances and we dominate games.

 

“We have done throughout this cup competition and used it as a pre-season to gel in the new players, to get fitness into the lads.

 

“I think we have to be happy with everything we have done. We have kept four clean sheets, which is really important, even for the way that we play.

 

“I think we can be really satisfied. We are not allowed to get carried away with ourselves. The season starts on August 6 and we will focus on that.”

 

http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/sport/14642167.Niko_Kranjcar__Rangers_fans_have_suffered_for_a_long_time___now_we_have_an_obligation_to_strive_for_success/

[calscot 0]

While we all debate a "first 11" the manager keeps insisting there is no first 11. Perhaps this season it might be the case where the first 11 or let's call it the starting 11 will be a fluid concept being constantly modified to suit different opposition.

 

We do seem to have a ton of options in midfield of pretty high quality - it's hard to choose a prefered three between them, but means the odd injury or ban shouldn't be a problem. Must admit though, didn't think Barton had a good first half, but maybe it's just me. Sutton kept going on about him being a different class to the rest, but while I think he has the quality, I don't think he shone in this game.

 

Up front is pretty covered for players who create chances, but we need a deadlier finisher - Waghorn did grab a brace, but it maybe should have been a couple more, and he maybe needs to hit the target more often. Kenny came on and lived up to his pejorative soubriquet, he worked hard and got into good positions, I just wish he could finish like Boyd or McCoist - scrappy as you like, but in the net. He had at least two glaring misses.

 

I thought Waghorn was a bit unlucky with the offside decisions, he had a fair few that were hard to call even with slowmo and freeze frame. But that's encouraging as if he just delays his runs by a fraction of a second, with a couple of good assistant referees he will make a killing from the offside trap.

 

The old guard defence was pretty solid (for a change) but they will face far sterner tests, and that's still the part of the team I'm not convinced with. I think we have ok quality but not a wealth of riches. Maybe a fully fit Barton and a settled Rossiter will have a knock on effect to help change my view on that.

[Frankie 8,371]

Barton's performance was reasonable considering his lack of game-time.

 

Nothing glamorous or breath-taking: just simple possession football and good defensive positioning when required.

[cooponthewing 1,139]

Official attendance last night just under 30k(29,575) great turnout again from the real greatest fans in the world!?

[ian1964 10,625]

This is the guy who made the dirty tackle on Niko Kranjcar,thug!