Nigel Spackman finishing fourth in Premiership would be a fantastic achievement

[ian1964 10,591]

THE former Ibrox midfielder says a finish inside the top six would be good progress in their first season back in the top flight.

 

NIGEL SPACKMAN has told Rangers’ critics to get real with their expectations and insists a fourth place finish would be success in their first season back in the top flight.

 

Ibrox chairman Dave King claimed last month the Light Blues could mount a serious title challenge but suffered a setback after last week’s 5-1 defeat by champions and bitter rivals Celtic.

 

A string of Gers players have also talked up their chances since clinching promotion last season but former midfielder Spackman believes fourth spot would be “fantastic”.

 

The 55-year-old was wary even before the trip to the east end of Glasgow last week and accepts Celtic have too much for the Ibrox men in terms of current squad and resources after banking thier Champions League cash.

 

And the former Liverpool and Chelsea man - 100 appearances in almost three years in Scotland - said: “If Rangers can finish in the top four then it would be a fantastic season for Rangers.

 

“It’s going to be hard for them to compete and with the budget and size of the squad they have - a lot of these players haven’t played at this level before - then a top four finish would be a good season.

 

“Hearts and Aberdeen are both decent sides and there’s a lot of building to do for Rangers over the next few years. You can’t just do it in a few months.

 

“If you look at what’s happened to Rangers over the last four years both on and off the field and how they’ve come back you’ve got to put it all in perspective.

 

“Rangers are back where they deserve to be in the Scottish Premiership but it’s going to to take a while to be able to compete, especially with Celtic, because of the budgets and experience.

 

“Rangers fans are sensible and know their football and I’m sure they understand that. They know better than anyone where they’ve been and they’re on their way back.

 

“But it doesn’t happen in one season. It’s a long road ahead and when you don’t have the budget like Celtic have at their disposal - especially after getting into the Champions League - then it’s very difficult to compete unless there is a big injection of money into the club.

 

“You could argue that Rangers have the second biggest budget in the league and should therefore finish second but the likes of Aberdeen and Hearts, you could even throw St Johnstone in, have established players who have been there and done it.

 

“They are growing all the time and Rangers need to try and compete with those clubs. It’s not about competing with Celtic just now, it’s Aberdeen and Hearts. If Rangers finish fourth it will be a good season, hopefully win one of the Cups and build from there.”

 

Rangers have made their worst start to a a league campaign since Graeme Souness was in charge in 1989 and they failed to win any of their first three games and won just two of their opening eight matches.

 

Spackman arrived midway through that campaign - signing from QPR in November 1989 - after the Light Blues had recovered from their bad start and went on to win the title.

 

Now he hopes Warburton’s men can do the same after dropping seven points in their opening five games ahead of the visit of League Cup winners Ross County on Saturday with the Staggies just a point behind in the table.

 

The Rangers defence has come in for criticism with statistics showing that they are currently in just under half of all shots on target they face and are particularly vulnerable from the central channel of the penalty box.

 

Spackman said: “When results don’t go well people start looking at things and picking holes but you’re trying to build something and it doesn’t happen overnight.

 

“I don’t know Mark Warburton that well but I know him to say hello to and I live in west London so I know what a fantastic job he did at Brentford and got them into the Championship playo-offs.

 

“He has a style he likes to play and it won Rangers promotion to the top flight. It worked. Sometimes you have to make adjustments. But it’s early in the season and there is a long way to go in the campaign.

 

“Over the season you have to say Celtic are favourites for every competition. In a one-off game as Rangers showed in the Scottish Cup last season they’re capable of beating Celtic.

 

“But it’s a completely different game going to Celtic Park compared to Ibrox or Hampden in a neutral venue. Rangers have only just been promoted while Celtic are established with a bigger squad and budget.”

 

Warburton faces defensive concerns ahead of the visit of the Staggies with Philippe Senderos suspended after his derby red card and Rob Kiernan limping off at Parkhead.

 

But Danny Wilson could has stepped up his comeback from a calf injury and with Queen of the South next up at Ibrox in the Betfred Cup quarter finals on Tuesday, Warburton could juggle his squad.

 

He said: “You are caught between a rock and a hard place sometimes – but it’s a positive place to be. You can talk about utilising the squad and making a load of changes, or you can say new players need time to bed in.

 

“It’s a balance between the two, and the Tuesday game is a good one for us. It’s a League Cup quarter-final we want to of course win, but it is a chance between those two games to rotate the personnel and maybe tweak the formation slightly within that, so we will have a look and see how that goes.

 

“Danny Wilson has been out running this week and has done some light ball work, so that is positive. We welcomed back Matt Crooks to full training this week which was nice to see, Joe Dodoo will be back in the full group this week.

 

“We are starting to get the bodies back, it’s the nature of the league that we have had a few injuries and it’s nice to have the choices.”

 

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/rangers-finishing-fourth-premiership-would-8836216

[Scott7 5,553]

Just the sort of player we need. I suppose 55 is too old.

[RANGERRAB 3,398]

Anything outside the top three is totally unacceptable

[der Berliner 3,453]

While it is interesting to note what people have to say, I usually keep my own counsel on this. And the one thing I have learned these last 30odd years: a season is a marathon and what happens of MD 5 or even 10 has rarely if ever had any significance on the championship as a whole.

 

BTW, I noted that some argue that in days gone by we had better teams and thus it was easier to achieve our goals. Yet, if you look at the teams in the Premiership these days, it is not exactly the case that they are quality-laden either. Mind you, people could not chase Smith, Boyd and Foster out of our team quickly enough ... and it is them who we are facing these days.

Edited September 15, 2016 by der Berliner

[Tannochsidebear 2,346]

Anything outside the top three is totally unacceptable

 

Third is unacceptable. We have by far the largest budget, structure, etc outwith the tims in the league, we supposedly have the best manager and coaches, and a squad that on paper is miles ahead of our rivals bar one. Look at Dolly & Hearts euro campaigns to see their quality. Third would be abject failure.

[Gribz 745]

I think if you break it into a mini league of Rangers, Aberdeen and Hearts - its a must we finish higher than them.

[Ser Barristan Selmy 222]

Third is unacceptable. We have by far the largest budget, structure, etc outwith the tims in the league, we supposedly have the best manager and coaches, and a squad that on paper is miles ahead of our rivals bar one. Look at Dolly & Hearts euro campaigns to see their quality. Third would be abject failure.

Absolutely. Finishing second is the bare minimum required this season.

[Scott7 5,553]

Spackman - Barton. Compare and contrast.