Derek Cornelius reveals major Danny Rohl change at Rangers, it’s hugely damning for Russell Martin
Derek Cornelius has made a striking Rangers reveal that reflects overwhelmingly poorly on Russell Martin.
The Gers secured their first win of Danny Rohl’s reign on Sunday, which was also their first Premiership three points on home turf so far this season.
Cornelius scored the opener for Rangers in their 3-1 victory over Kilmarnock at Ibrox, and he caught the eye with an impressive display that will certainly have made his new manager sit up and take notice.
The Canada international has been a key player for the Govan outfit since he joined on loan from Marseille on deadline day, and that looks set to continue moving forward.
Derek Cornelius on ‘biggest change’ from Russell Martin’s reign
Cornelius has quickly taken to life at Rangers, and he has been one of their few reliable performers in the opening stages of the domestic campaign.
The 27-year-old is imperious at the back, and now looks to be the perfect partner for John Souttar at the heart of the defence.
Cornelius is likely to play another key role in Wednesday’s Premiership clash away at Hibernian, and he has already raised eyebrows with a comment that he made during his pre-match press conference on Tuesday.
The former Malmo man opened up on the biggest change that he has seen in the squad since Rohl’s arrival at Ibrox, and it certainly doesn’t reflect well on his predecessor Martin.
“The biggest change since Danny (Rohl) has come in has been the mentality, we are more aggressive and we run for each other, that’s how it should be at Rangers,” Cornelius said via Rangers’ X account.
The defender’s comments are certainly a positive indication that the German may already be well on his way to fixing the mental weakness that has been highlighted in the squad on several occasions already this season.
However, his statements surrounding the players running for each other insinuate that the desire to do that wasn’t there under Martin, which is a hugely damning indictment of his ability to motivate a group.
Danny Rohl has provided the Rangers squad with a perfect reset
Danilo also found the net for Rangers in Sunday’s victory, and there were several positive signs of the new level of determination within the squad during that game.
That goal was only the Brazilian’s second strike of the campaign so far, and he looked like a new player at times during the win at Ibrox.
- Danilo hadn’t scored since 19 August prior to Sunday’s game
- He had played just 21 minutes of football since the end of August before Rohl handed him a start last weekend
Mohamed Diomande also looked like a player reborn at the heart of the midfield, as he appeared ready to put his dismal recent displays behind him and kick on under Rohl.
The 36-year-old’s arrival appears to have reinvigorated the group, and competition for places looks set to emerge, which simply wasn’t there during Martin’s tenure.
There clearly wasn’t enough desire for the squad to push each other to reach the best of their ability on a consistent basis, and that is ultimately something which falls on the manager’s head.
It is a hugely promising sign that Rohl has been able to instil this new mentality so quickly, but the next challenge will be for him to maintain it as the weeks go by.
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