Report – Observers ‘surprised’ by unexpected Rangers approach during midseason Dubai trip
Rangers’ collapse over the second half of this season may have come as a result of Steven Gerrard working his players too hard during their midseason trip to Dubai, according to the Daily Record.
The Gers went in to January just two points behind Celtic with a game in hand following a famous 2-1 victory at Parkhead in late December.
Now, however, they are 13 points adrift of their bitter rivals, who looked set to wrap up a ninth consecutive league title with ease prior to the current Coronavirus crisis.
And as the inquest into what went wrong begins, focus has naturally focussed on the Gers’ approach to the winter break – the turning point in their season.
A piece from the Record reads: “He [Gerrard] will have spent the last couple of months in isolation mulling even more deeply on why his group exhibited a collapse in domestic form after Christmas for the second year in a row.
“The answer is layered and likely to focus heavily on his approach to the mid-winter break and how hard he works his players for those vital two weeks in January.
“Observers were surprised in Dubai, for example, at the two-a-day training sessions conducted by Rangers on a trip assistant Gary McAllister had declared was less of a mini pre-season and more of a top up.
“Celtic boss Neil Lennon, now a veteran of the Scottish scene, worked his players less strictly but, as the months have gone on, with greater purpose.”
What has gone wrong for Rangers this season?
That’s the million dollar question, isn’t it?
The reality is that it would be far too simple to point to one sole factor as the cause of their stuttering form in 2020.
Undoubtedly, Alfredo Morelos’ goal drought – with just one goal since Boxing Day – has been a huge blow to the Gers, with the Colombian having scored 28 prior to his current slump.
Similarly, the inability to see off sides like Hamilton, St. Johnstone, and even Hearts in the cup has essentially damned Gerrard’s men to another trophy-free season.
But people like to have concrete answers to things that make very little sense, and it’s only natural that observers are looking to the turning point in the Gers’ campaign as the cause of their downfall.
Did Gerrard work his squad too hard in Dubai, and have they seemed jaded ever since because they are, in fact, fatigued?
It’s a possibility, but the only people who will ever know for sure are the players themselves.
In other Rangers news, Report – Gers agree £20 million boardroom deal.