Giovanni van Bronckhorst jumps to defend Rangers philosophy ahead of Napoli clash
Despite pressure building around his role as manager, Rangers boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst insists his side will not change their philosophy for Wednesday’s Napoli clash.
After consecutive 4-0 defeats to Celtic and Ajax, van Bronckhorst has found himself under immense pressure heading into the side’s Champions League match against Napoli.
Rangers currently trail rivals Celtic by five points in the Scottish Premiership, and defeat on Wednesday night could derail their Champions League campaign too.
But while many have questioned the Dutchman’s style and tactics of late, he has no plans to change them at Ibrox on Wednesday night.
Speaking to Sky Sports ahead of the clash, van Bronckhorst said “No nothing to change about philosophy, two weeks ago we qualified for the Champions League and everything was fine.
“Two weeks later it looks like we haven’t performed in the last couple of years. I’m not changing anything about my philosophy and how I want to play.”
“Of course it’s going to be tough, but I don’t understand why we have to put our philosophy on the side,” he added. “We could go to Ajax and play with 10 defenders but we’re not improving as a team like that. We’ll go out tomorrow with the same philosophy and try to win the game.”
Tactical naivety
While Rangers fans of course want their side to put on entertaining displays and attempt to win every match, van Bronckhorst has to balance the line between bravery and recklessness.
There’s no denying that Rangers headed to Amsterdam last week as underdogs, and that’s a title that has so often suited the Gers in recent European nights.
But van Bronckhorst’s questionable strategy left his side vulnerable, and his plan of going toe-to-toe with Ajax still left the side with just one shot on target after 90 minutes.
With the side now low on confidence and in poor form, it’s time for Van Bronckhorst to show his experience and rally the squad against Napoli.
With home advantage in their favour, Rangers have every right to tackle Napoli head on and target three points, but van Bronckhorst will need to get the balance right, or his time in Glasgow could quickly come to an end.
In other Rangers news, Jeff Stelling made a bold prediction ahead of Wednesday’s Napoli clash