Claudio Caniggia, anyone?

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Claudio Caniggia, anyone?

Remember Claudio Caniggia? It is a fair bet a great number of readers might not even know that name, or may only vaguely recall the era in which he played. As older Bears definitely will know, he was part of the last time Dundee beat Rangers, scoring in a 0-2 win at Ibrox in 2001, before he himself became a Rangers player not long after.

Rangers were in a bad way back then, with poor form blighting the end of Dick Advocaat’s reign as players like Craig Moore, Stefan Klos, Barry Ferguson and Tore Andre Flo struggled to cope with a resurgent Celtic under Martin O’Neill.

Oh what we would give for those kinds of problems today.

Yesterday Rangers found ancient history repeating itself as Dens Park’s finest outwitted, outfought, outmuscled, outplayed and plain outclassed an absolutely ghastly visiting Ibrox side, which appears to be careering headlong into something of an abyss, with Hartley’s outfit the latest to claim a blue scalp which gets less of a prize with every passing week.

To call Rangers horrible right now is an understatement, and yesterday’s abysmal loss left Graeme Murty’s ‘side’ (this is barely a team at present) six points off second place with Celtic now 30 points in the distance.

In my lifetime I do not ever recall Rangers being this far behind their Old Firm rivals in any season. There have been bad seasons with gaps close to 20 points, yes, but this is a new level of horror, and the fact Derek McInnes’ efficient Aberdeen with their vastly inferior budget are clearly superior on the pitch too rubs salt in the increasingly gaping wound.

To call this Rangers is simply wrong. This current shambles is not anything like a Rangers any of us recognise and each passing week that we witness more embarrassing chaos from the men in blue the more we yearn for something to believe in again.

The signs were already bad from before a ball was even kicked yesterday. First that absolutely vile starting XI. The Warburton clique crew were in full effect as Murty basically chose all the failures who have made this season such a disaster. Claims were made in the media that it was a change of formation too, but the official site was deliberately silent about this, identifying only the ‘attacking 6’ in front of the defence.

And while the formation did look a little different, it was even more disorganised, and I am in disbelief it has taken eight months for a pundit to actually articulate the issue, as Neil McCann did:

“I’m not sure about the formation being 4-2-3-1. Unless it’s fluid and players are being more dynamic and switching places…I don’t know.”

I don’t know. That quote was a slight paraphrase but Rangers basically have no formation. Once those players go out there, the front six get fragmented and it is anyone’s guess as to what the hell the system is. One minute it is 3-3, then it is 4-2, then 3-2-1-2…or something.

And while there was certainly a little sign of a shift in tempo, with attempts to get the ball forward a touch quicker being evident, the inability to conjoin a coherent passage of play or to create any meaningful openings at all (Forrester’s miss aside) was a symptom of picking all the horrors that the ex-manager signed. To watch the same old stale rubbish masquerading as Rangers players was an affront to decency, with no attempt by the interim coach to switch personnel and try something radical.

Then the current coach rubbed salt in the wound – pre-match he explained that while they would try to stream the ball down the lines faster and use it more efficiently, it was still about dominating the ball. Why? Why is it STILL about doing what does not work?! Winning is what counts, playing half decent football is a bonus but this absolutely hysterical obsession with continuing Warburton’s utterly hopeless philosophy borders on insanity.

Insanity is defined in modern culture as doing the same thing over and over and hoping for a different outcome. By this definition, Rangers are insane right now, and Murty’s bewildering selection of the always hopeless Rob Kiernan was almost like a sympathy vote to the boy.

Sometimes words do not cut it. And this entry feels just like that. I apologise for failing to really articulate what I feel. Yesterday we saw the latest low of an absolutely ghastly Rangers era, one which does not seem to want to go away.

Is this how it is to be till a new manager finally changes things? Or knowing our luck, will a new boss just do all the same stuff the old one did?

Jesus wept.

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36 COMMENTS

  1. Good article which oozes of discomfort and frustration. I too feel your pain. It seems no matter who was in charge right now we'd get similar outcomes in performance.It's evident the current squad just can't cut it any more than the Ally MacCoist teams of recent memory.
    We'e been fed this diet of possession football from MB and no one wants to take responsibility, I fear we will have to suffer more of the same until a new manager and an overdue clear-out happens.
    The Warburton legacy will haunt us for more months to come. Sorry if I'm pessimistic but we did not learn from those seasons in the lower leagues when we playing on smaller pitches against teams who packed their defences and tried to deny us space. Oh! just like most teams in the top tier.

    • I couldn't agree more. You're hardly being pessamsitc when we have nothing to be optimistic about. Pessamsitc is the reality. The team is a disaster. MW has done nothing but instill our well below standard players with bad habits that are going to take a lot of breaking and that's just to see out the rest of the season. I doubt even Walter would break their habits. We need a whole new squad for next season but can't see a clear out happening.

    • The club is a shambles, no one serious would touch the job, March 12 is looming large now and many at Ibrox must be very very nervous about what could happen there if Celtic hit top form

  2. Excellent article again guys , It was amazing to listen to wee McCann too on the TV who couldn't even identify WTF the Gers were playing to or even doing . As I said earlier McLeish till EOS then De Boer and the Director of Football role filled . Need to get Ashely thing sorted too so we can get more revenue …Please Lottery !!!!!

  3. Well said Papillion agree 100% we have to get back to 442 the or even 3 at the back like Conte at Chelsea Italian defending with pure pace up front and down the flanks ….Oooops dreaming again sorry !!!

  4. Mcleish & fergie (barry) 4 me.We don't even have a natural captain in the gough or butcher mould who kicked arse when nedeed. big lee to quiet for me despite being onlyone of three that shoud stay.the others being miller & mc Kay.

  5. murty just another macdowall without the clipboard cant remember being so angry during and after the game even during those years from 77 to 85 we still had some good teams to watch but this team have put us on a lower scale i have seen outwith macoist teams in the lower leagues this one is rock bottom

  6. Yes 100% We have a guy who has pace to burn , paid 500k for him and he hardly ever gets a game.Mckay left O Halloran right and Miller/ Waghorn or Gardner through the middle , they wouldn't like that up them mr mannering

  7. My team would be. jay in goals back 4 of wallace halliday bates hodgson with toral playmaker just in front of them while breaking up play. windass on the left hand side and waghorn on the right hand side with hynd man playing in behind a front two of miller & Mc Kay.wee barries pace would desrtoy mosr centre halves. I am lucky to remember peter lovenkrands playing up top against celtic and scoring twice.lastly one of warburtons best performaces as manages was against dundee when he instructed the front three to constantly change formation and pulled the dundee defence all over the place. what happened after will remain a mystery !

  8. Sadly familiar yesterday. When Murty said he was putting Kiernan back in the team because he had "trained like a beast", a flicker of hope ignited in my chest.
    It very quickly sputtered out.
    This is a team shot of confidence. Tavernier is a bombscare, Halliday is bereft of swagger, Miller aimless and I thought Hyndman disappeared playing further back.
    I am a big believer in a team "spine"- keeper the defenders can rely on (no), solid commanding CB (no), fiery combative DM (no) and someone to lead the line (probably the only position where we might have potential in Garner).
    I watched the first disc of the 9 in a row DVD the other night. What spines those teams had… Woods/Goram, Butcher/Gough, McCall/Ferguson… no need to go there, I suppose.

    If I were to pick a team tomorrow?
    Alnwick; Hodson, Wallace, Bates, Wilson; Hyndman, Windass; McKay and O'Halloran on the wings, Waghorn and Garner through the middle. Much as I admire Kenny Miller for his endurance, he spends far too much time wandering around the pitch and needs to stay middle to front, not meandering all over the shop.

    But, like I said, it's a group of players completely devoid of any confidence.
    Whoever comes in needs to be a man management specialist.

    • All halliday has is swagger. That and f–k all else. He swans around dreaming he is Jim Baxter, then wonders what happened when quick players swoop on him and brush the lightweight off the ball.
      For a big guy, Lee Wallace is abysmal in the air. Just like Kiernan and Wilson. Hill is ok in attacking set pieces. Not so hot defending them. supposedly his main job. The only CB we have who is good in the air, defensively is Senderos. Or should I call him "Scapegoat".
      Danny Wilson is our best CB on the deck. Him and Senderos should be playing. At least until we get a look at Bates and some new CBs are brought in. Wilson is a good tackler, but is too slow. A quick winger would roast him if played at full back.
      If you want to play Garner through the middle you need two quick wingers that can get behind the full backs and whip in a good cross. Both McKay and O'Halloran are quick. Both are right footed. Both are hopeless on their left peg. One or the other should be playing. Not both. You are on the right track there though. We DO need TWO wide players playing.
      Harry Forrester is fairly quick. He is right footed, but has a decent left peg too. He can cross a ball from the byline. Andy Halliday is slow. He is left footed. He isn't the best passer around (lol) but he can swing a bsll with his left peg. He was a "winger" before some nut case thought he was a DM. Try either on the left. See how it goes.
      Old Brian Clough had a slow left winger once. He could cross a ball and won Cloughie TWO European Cups.
      Hyndman or Windass could sit in between the wide two and behind Garner or Dodoo.
      We need TWO DMs, playing in a 4-2-3-1 set up, to protect our slow CBs. We don't have a single one who is fit. Unless there is one in the youth ranks. We had four at the start of the season, Jordan Thompson, Matt Crooks, Joey Barton and Jordan Rossiter.
      Rossiter is always crocked. Warburton let Barton go and paid him to go as well. He loaned Thompson out then, when everyone started to see through Halliday, he protected Halliday by shipping Matt crooks out on loan as well.
      Try this. It's the best we have until we can bring others in.

      4-2-3-1

      Foderingham:
      Hodson, Senderos, Wilson, wallace:
      Halliday's Grandad, Halliday's Grandmother:
      McKay, Hyndman, Forrester:
      Garner (or Dodoo):

      Feel free to put in any replacements you can think of for Andy's grandparents.

    • Fair points. DM is the weak spot. Halliday on the left wing isn't a bad shout, is it? Relieve him of the responsibility of protecting the defence. Get Crooks back if Rossiter isn't fit. Thompson, Burt- whoever. McKay and Garner through the middle, MOH on the right. Agree on Wilson. Senderos HAS to be better than he's shown. Why not reinvent a wing-back like Conte has done with Moses? Play Wilson, Senderos and Hill in the defence, Wallace and whoever as wing-backs. The DM, then Halliday-McKay-Garner-O'Halloran. McKay could even play the no.10 role- give him some beef to get his teeth into. He was great through the middle that one game, can't remember which.
      Not a massive fan of Forrester in that he's a bit of a liability. Always going to make stupid challenges. Good as a sub though. Well, apart from Sunday- muppet.

    • Meant to say too, Foderingham is costing us a goal a game at the moment, I reckon. I was looking at the Port Vale forums when we were in for Alnwick and the fans rated him massively. They were gutted to only get 250k and thought it must have been a clause. And yes, get the bloody youth in there. Can't believe Coisty arsed that up. Get Ryan Hardie back pronto.

  9. My advice to the board is to replace Murty as the provisional manager today. I am furious with the lack of knowledge within the Ibrox boardroom and what’s going on at Murray Park at the moment. Far too many average or poor players in the first team squad.

    It will be a difficult enough job for an experienced guy like McLeish or (A N Other), to steady the ship, before it sinks to oblivion.

    Foderingham at fault for Morton goal and second against Dundee through wrong positioning, so needs replacing with new keeper Jak Alnwick for this weeks game at Ibrox.
    Hodson rotten at left-back but good at right-back.
    Tavernier, NEVER a right back and a hindrance defensively. Wing-back or out the team.
    Kiernan, just not good enough and what about the young, tall Bates getting a chance?
    Hill keep in the starting 11.
    Senderos is not fully match fit thanks to Warburton
    Wallace MUST defend more and attack less.
    O'Halloran has pace and nothing else
    Halliday and Holt are both off form and should be out of the team
    Hyndman, McKay, Miller and Garner must start
    Waghorn is NOT a right winger, I would play him at central midfield
    Forrester and maybe Dodoo given a chance

    My 4 – 4 -2 line-up
    Jak Alnwick
    Hodson, Bates, Hill, Wallace
    (O'Halloran, Toral or Forrester), Hyndman, Waghorn, Miller
    Garner (to get stuck in & maybe score) and McKay (try him up front along with Garner)

    Give us some fight in the team, no matter who is playing.

    • For a big unit, Martin Waghorn is a total shitebag in the tackle. Midfield is no place for him. Neither is the right wing, of course.

  10. Can't believe you would include Forrester and Waghorn in any team. Under 20's lads should be given a chance. Yes it is a big ask but its no use wrapping them in cotton wool when we have a bunch of failures running up white flags all over the pitch as soon as the first whistle goes.By all accounts we have some excellent young teenage players so give 'em a chance and forget the dross. The fans will support our young lads but we have more than had it with your Forresters and Waghorns.

    • Harry Forrester was our best player until Warburton inexplicably dropped him. he needs a run to get back on song. Problem is the season is coming to an end. Agreed about Waghorn. He has reasonable pace once he gets going. However, for a big unit, he is a shit-bag tackler. Also, I've seen some "one footed" players over the years but that guy is something else.
      I wonder if the other teams will notice that McKay is right footed and Waghorn is left footed. They might even notice they come inside 99% of the time to get on their correct foot. Just as well MW was smart enough to kid them all. Obviously only you and I have noticed it. LOL
      Couldn't agree more about giving the kids a run. McCoist wasted so much time. MW has wasted this season.

      Best Wishes.

  11. My 4-4-2 line-up
    Alnwick
    Hodson,Bates,Hill,Wilson
    Toral,Hyndman,Wallace,McKay
    Garner,Dodoo

    I'd like to see us try Wallace as a box to box midfielder, to try and put some bite and determination intothe midfield. Wilson reminds me of Papac and Walter turned him into a tremendous left back. I would ban the full backs from crossing the half way line and tell McKay to hit the by line and send in crosses for the strikers. Toral would cut inside onto his left peg and hopefully create chances.If anyone shirked a tackle I would fine them! It might be a bit old school, but the shitey possession play tactics haven't worked all season.

    • On second thoughts I'd play Burt instead of Toral, because the loanee won't be here next season. We'll never know if Burt is good enough unless we throw him in.

  12. Please Jst get a man in ryt now whether it's to the end of season or beyond, it's becoming a joke need a manager to go in ther n give aw they duds a shake. Players that will not be there next season should not b in the future plans from here on in n players play ther favoured positions n if not available to them out the team. for me foderingham garbage out the team, kearnan out,tav out unless he plays further forward, Halliday out or play him further forward,

    My team keeper Alnwick, hodson RB, hill, Wilson, Wallace LB,
    LW McKay,CM Hyndman, RW waghorn , AM Miller.
    Up front. garner (wins everything in the air play a player up with him with real pace ohalloran. That's wer he played his best for st Johnston. 4-3-1-2. Can easily b changed to a 4-4-2 or a 4-5-1 if we have something to protect.

  13. The cries to replace Murty seem a bit optimistic to me, our BoD have taken the cheap option again sadly….but did you really really really expect anything else….when you have NO MONEY you have very few options… there will be at least £2m of ST monies going on unfair dismissl claims…so that's next season's budget out the window…I gave up my 2 season tickets in the Govan as soon as King took over… I stated then until I saw the colour of his money…he wouldn't be seeing any of mine… I'm still waiting….and so is he.

    GSTQ

    • Hard to argue with that.

      PS McLeish has been abysmal since he left rangers and his final days at Rangers were rubbish. It'll be another cheapo or someone desperate for work

  14. one shambles to the next, once chancer to the next..King has been hopeless really, his handling of the Warburton affair is dubious imo and it will cost the club big time ,there are court cases hanging over the club, Club statements read like they've been written in a pub after a sing song, the team is heartless, utterly abysmal performances and I feel Rangers will do well to finish in the top 4, Meanwhile it seems the gap to Celtic looks unbridgeable for a long long long long time. Rangers could be looking at very dark days as a club in the short to medium future…the long term future…well , who knows?

  15. We are RANGRS F.C ffs the best supported team in the world bar none. F**K this doom and gloom attitude, I was brought up singing we'll support you ever more.Let's lift the roof of ibrox evry game till the end of the season and push them on.Let the glory hunters from the east end see why we are SIMPLY THE BEST. OUR club needs us more than at anytime in my 40 years of followig the club.we will SURRENDER to no one. NEVER NEVER NEVER !

    • Scooby 100% we need to give the players support during games.

      But we can't bury our heads to the absolute shambles of a disaster that we currently are.

    • Romantic blue tinted sentiment.

      We need to get real.

      The future is very uncertain for this club.

      Action needed by the board, or by the fans to remove them

  16. One from the other side of the city and maybe a different slant
    This site is the only one I read as although it's one sided as you'd expect it's pretty well written and not the dark side which both sides have.
    Warburton did pretty decent with his signings until he brought the superscout in. After that signings were awful and that's the facts. Trusted someone else's judgement. Showed his immaturity with his teams tactics and interviews all year which is what tired people of him. media turn and fans turn. I grew up with butcher v biggins, woods v muggleton. It's life I'm afraid. Good with the bad. It's called being a supporter even with the old firm. Get a manager in that makes you difficult to beat with a bit of real quality up front and the gap will be paper thin. We can both beat the diddy teams. Keep supporting your team though, that's what's needed even if they're below expectations. A manager that has a clue and can motivate will make a massive difference to that team. focus on the suits that are selling your club short

    • A sensible respectful comment and I totally agree.
      It will be a while before we get close to celtic but we should be a strong second. A very strong second.
      Who knows after that but we need someone like Frank de Boer with a bit of cash and a HUGE clearout in the summer.
      Thanks for your comment and hopefully sunnier skies ahead for the good of scottish football…

    • Back then Celtic had somewhere to go, ie a new stadium would stimulate growth and interest, hugely successful share issues, an honest owner who outlined a plan and stuck to it. Rangers….

  17. Either the board has a big ace up their sleeve with a massive investor coming in the near future or they really just dont get it.

    The past week or so has been quite surreal with the dubious alleged resignation of the 3 ruffians, to the delay brining in a temporary manager till the end of the season. The board is watching the same games as we are, so should be obvious to them what we are all complaining about ourselves.

    The Rangers board possess a lot of answers, but deprive us Rangers fans the "tranparency" they pride themselves on. Why?

    I think there is more to all this than meets the eye, but only the board can come out and explain their plan for the future re investment and forecast their thoughts on when Rangers will challenge shellic, because King said next season, but we all know, realistically that aint going to happen unless a huge cash injection is forthcoming for a top class manager and decent players,,so, they either have something in the pipe line, or they are selling us fans a pipe dream!

  18. Who really is Dave King, what really is his agenda, prove you have transferred £18M to RFC, prove how the £18M was spent, speak up with your thoughts on how you will spend your next promised £12M, seems to me he will ask us to buy our season tickets, promise to invest, then slope off with the hope the share price moves in his favour with little or no risk while we as a coub suffer. When you going to go Mr King. J

  19. Don't forget that Dundee should have been 1-0 up within 30 seconds with kiernan left for dead yet again and without a VERY lucky
    Wes save late on it could have been another 4-1. Fucking hell…when will this mess end?
    Mind you , if celtic had lost 10 games then we would be level! lol Warbs has done so much damage to this great club…

  20. Getagrip
    At last, a voice of reason. Barring an Emirati prince (and that will not happen) Rangers will be living in the financial and footballing shadow of Celtic for a good number of years.
    You seem to recognise that, but too many others don't. They think cries of "no surrender" and "watp" will somehow magic a solution.

    • Its all emotional and sentimental tosh. It counts for nothing and impresses no one other than the ubers. Rangers very future is, imo, under threat and yet all we hear is related to Celtic being miles ahead,,,Rangewrs need to ignore Celtics place for now and save the fcuking club!

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