JFK-1 1,693 Posted July 8, 2019 Share Posted July 8, 2019 The article linked to at the bottom of this post was published back on April 25th five days after we convincingly beat Hearts 3-1 at Tynecastle prior to the current transfer window opening and is titled "Embarrassment of riches – Glasgow Rangers have so many options in key position" Today's result and performance against Oxford factoring in the situation of a fluid 11 littered with debutants playing our last pre season warm up before a Euro tie was more than acceptable. It's likely most or even all of us would have have accepted a comfortable 2-0 in this situation but what we got was a rout of a side who are at least comparable with the bottom half of the SPL. The Europa league at this stage is crucial for us. Making that group stage is a financial game changer for us. Potential funds for a major January signing for a final push on the title. Making the groups is my major hope for the season Euro wise. I'm not so concerned about results in the group should we make it since I want the league to be the priority and believe the Thursday/Sunday games were a factor in our failure to win the league. If we make it to the group stages and one of the games followed by an encounter with the yahoos on the Sunday I want that yahoo encounter to have priority even to the lengths of simply 'resting' multiple key players. Just making those groups is our major requirement and I would make that the priority till or if it's obtained. Since the opening of the transfer window window the side has indisputably in my view been strengthened. We had 4 debutants in the starting 11 against Oxford while reportedly all of them performed acceptably well. Add in to that other newcomers such as Lewis Mayo from the academy performing creditably we have a strength in depth that hasn't existed in a long time. And the window is still open for sometime yet with, currently, our greatest outlay being around 700K or so for Edmundson. I would think it reasonable to assume that more than that and possibly even much more than that was promised to Gerrard for this window even if Morelos stays. While losing Morelos who is young and a guaranteed source of goals when he's playing would be a bitter blow for what is a crucial season on a number of fronts not just for Rangers but for Gerrard too. If he can pull this off this season he will have ticked one box on the Liverpool manager application form. And I feel this may be his greatest chance to pull it off. If he doesn't pull it off this season the yahoos are then likely to pull out all the stops to get a 10iar making it even tougher next season. Regarding the potential loss of Morelos If that happens in the current climate I would expect it to be a minimum £10 million potentially comfortably more and a lucrative sell on clause. If that scenario unfolds I would expect a sizeable chunk of the money to then be spent on a replacement guaranteed goal source or at least as close to guaranteed as we can expect in the circumstances. Defoe is a guaranteed source of goals but there has to be quality back up for a guy who is at the outer edge of his career. As an aside Daniel Sturridge was reportedly at the Oxford game. We all discovered at the end of last season that we can indeed play and win convincingly scoring freely without Morelos. Since that time I would now rather lose Morelos than Tavernier if it had to be one or the other. We absolutely must retain Tav since he's probably the only one linked with any transfer out rumours who could throw a real spanner in the works of this strengthening operation. It would take more than we can afford to bring in an equivalent quality replacement and even if we did he couldn't directly replace the local and Rangers experience of Tavernier. However it all pans out before the window closes I do expect us to have tangibly strengthened even further and with that in mind have some minimum expectations for the season ahead predominately league games wise. We played some good football last season but displayed erratic inconsistency too often for a title win. Sometimes the stutters came in games against the lower league opposition playing a backs to the wall packed box strategy we couldn't break down. This time I have a minimum expectation that we have added good quality options which will provide the key to breaking them down, consistently. Another category of 'stutter' was against those just below us in the league who were also often to at least some degree playing the same backs to the wall strategy of the lower league teams in which where we were predominately dominant but still couldn't win. This time I have a minimum expectation that we will be at least as dominant against these sides while winning more of these games than we did last season. And as a little add on to that I suspect rather than expect that we may score even more goals than we have the in the past two seasons both of which we finished as top scorers with 76 goals scored in the league in 17/18 rising to 82 league goals last season. Perhaps we could hit the 90's this time. A minimum expectation I will be looking for us to again at least match the yahoos in our league encounters as we did last season and I would argue even overall outplayed them in 3 of the 4 games. We won on aggregate over those games. Bring all that together and we are surely looking at winning consistently and being top or within touching distance of top from day one. And realistically that's probably what's going to be required in this relatively poor league where the yahoos find it so relatively easy to be dominant consistently. I feel we can do it as thing stand though there is till time for the yahoos to make a significant response. Link to the article mentioned at the beginning. Embarrassment of riches – Glasgow Rangers have so many options in key position 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
compo 7,073 Posted July 8, 2019 Share Posted July 8, 2019 Morelos a proven goal scorer, sell him and were again playing for runners up position keep him and we can win the league . 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
buster. 5,208 Posted July 8, 2019 Share Posted July 8, 2019 This time last year I said that there will be teething problems and the new management team would need 3 transfer windows before a more considered judgement could be made on their work. Expectation will be focused on achieving a consistency of winning football matches in the League campaign. If we do that we'll be up there. IMO it's vital we start well, take advantage of the first OF match being at Ibrox and go into the first International break on top. Cup wise, anything else will be a bonus but if we get into the habit of winning games, something good might come from it. In Europe, I'd expect to get the QR3 and then you'd have to look at who we come up against. Formations, adaptability, discipline, squad make-up, etc., etc.... Now is the time SG&Co have to deliver. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
WorthingBear91 157 Posted July 8, 2019 Share Posted July 8, 2019 It baffles me why the OF game has not been moved to help Scottish teams do better in Europe that said I don't want them to do well, but the league should want this more money to teams in the league the better I would of thought 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
der Berliner 3,755 Posted July 8, 2019 Share Posted July 8, 2019 My gut feeling says that we are well capable of some sort of silverware next season. 55 was on the menue last season, bar some bizarre results, ill luck, heinous refereeing and re-refereeing. And obviously, a certain lack of tactical awareness and ability of keeping the high standards that the players were capable of. In saying that, players have learned, coaches have learned, and we got players capable at Premiership level, people able to tear down the brickwall mentality. It remains to be seen how much the Scum will click and whether we can finish teams off better. Any sort of silverware will be added to our historical treasure and that alone will have the Scum foaming on the mouth. What sure needs to be adressed is the CO farce and any sort of utterly mad claims of strict liability. IMHO, the former was pure distortion of competition last season ... 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gribz 864 Posted July 8, 2019 Share Posted July 8, 2019 A poll would be interesting on this with options of title win, close 2nd, cups, Euro Group Stages etc. Personally I think its got to be going for the league - I firmly expect us to be capable of it and I think Gerrard is the type who will drive on and learn from where we dropped points last season and will demand more. I dont see Celtic being as strong so a swing in the point gap is possible. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cooponthewing 1,139 Posted July 8, 2019 Share Posted July 8, 2019 (edited) 5 hours ago, Gribz said: A poll would be interesting on this with options of title win, close 2nd, cups, Euro Group Stages etc. Personally I think its got to be going for the league - I firmly expect us to be capable of it and I think Gerrard is the type who will drive on and learn from where we dropped points last season and will demand more. I dont see Celtic being as strong so a swing in the point gap is possible. League and cup double and last 16 in Europe at least. Shame FC will implode, anyone who plays for them should hang their heads in shame. They have no respect for themselves or their families. They are a sordid sewer of a club and we should wipe the floor with them. I can’t wait for 55 Edited July 8, 2019 by cooponthewing 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JFK-1 1,693 Posted July 8, 2019 Author Share Posted July 8, 2019 It has to be a major push from day one. Vital to take all points from the opening games before meeting the yahoos. Kilmarnock away on the opening day might be a tricky one given they are now something of an unknown entity with a new manager. But we still have better players than they do all over the pitch so it’s up to the players and management team to make sure that superiority prevails by hook or by crook. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ian1964 10,728 Posted July 8, 2019 Share Posted July 8, 2019 I expect to win the league 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEARGER 1,830 Posted July 8, 2019 Share Posted July 8, 2019 League winners nothing less. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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