Rangers players to require ‘psychologists’ after another Celtic defeat amid ‘spirit broken’ verdict by Tom English for BBC Sport
Rangers players had their “spirit broken” in yet another defeat to Celtic in the Scottish Cup semi final on Sunday (30 April) according to BBC Sport’s Tom English.
Michael Beale’s side were again their own worst enemy as they failed to take advantage of their opportunities, and conceded an inexcusable winner just before the half, with numerous players standing still as the Hoops picked up on a loose ball to steal ahead.
Having been the architects of their own downfall again English claims it is psychological training they need as much as any physical or technical help if they are to turn things around going forward.
Writing for BBC Sport after the game English said: “When Rangers gather as a grim collective to analyse what happened to them at Hampden on Sunday, they won’t need coaches and tactics boards to tackle it. They’ll need couches and psychologists – lots of them.”
And referring to the winning goal at Hampden he slammed the players involved, saying: “What if so many of them weren’t rendered statuesque in the pivotal moment of the semi-final? What if Borna Barisic and Nicolas Raskin and Ryan Kent and James Tavernier weren’t so comatose in the face of Daizen Maeda’s speed of thought and Jota’s cleverness of movement?”
Harsh but true
Given an extremely charitable assessment Rangers could argue they were the better side for three of Beale’s four meetings with Ange Postecoglou’s men.
And yet in those games they have managed to record a single point and essentially been eliminated from trophy contention in three separate competitions.
It is tempting to excuse Raskin for his part in the Celtic goal as he is less tainted by repeat flops in Old Firm derbies, and he looked as infuriated as most of the fans when none of his teammates picked up the ball, but it still wasn’t great by the Belgian.
John Lundstram was also in the vicinity so there was no shortage of candidates to prevent Maeda from taking advantage, and Tavernier allowing Jota to sneak in behind him when the Japanese midfielder crossed was the icing on a terrible cake.
It is sometimes considered that the Gers captain, despite his century of goals and major contributions to the side, is so worn down by Celtic dominance during his time at Ibrox that he doesn’t have the belief to drag his team back on top.
His efforts in defeat at Parkhead earlier this month (8 April) suggest otherwise, but over the course of this season there is a worrying amount of evidence building to support that view for him and his teammates.
The hope has to be that the summer rebuild under Beale injects enough fresh perspectives to lift those made weary by recent meetings, but already Raskin and Todd Cantwell have notched up three Old Firms without victory so the record needs to improve fast before even new signings fall into the same trap.
In other Rangers news, an Ibrox bid is being hurried up to bring in a new signing before he is snapped up elsewhere.