Rangers hero demands new Ibrox recruits adapt quicker to Scottish football as parallels drawn to own experience

Legendary former Rangers captain Barry Ferguson has outlined the importance of the Ibrox club’s newer recruits adapting to the Scottish game quicker as he questioned why Philippe Clement’s side are struggling to find any sort of consistency this season.

The Light Blues have failed to impress domestically so far with Clement’s men sitting in third place and 14 points behind league leaders Celtic ahead of Sunday’s visit to face St Johnstone in Perth. However, they have excelled in the Europa League and head into their latest Premiership match on the back of a convincing 4-1 away win over OGC Nice on Thursday night.

Ferguson, like the majority of supporters, has been left dismayed by their domestic struggles which is fast becoming an unwanted recurring theme as he drew parallels to being part of previous Rangers sides that have found it challenging to adapt between different competitions.

Writing in his Daily Record column, the Ferguson said: “I was at the Dundee United game on Saturday and it was below par - there was no tempo or aggression - but only slightly better in the second half so you were worried going to Nice - and then they go and put that performance on. But I need to see that at noon in Perth.

“You have to have a level of consistency. You can be off at times but you need to get about the pitch and be aggressive and force visitors to Ibrox. That’s what stood out for me - there was a real lack of intensity. The changes at half time helped a bit but against Nice the intensity was there for 90 minutes. You need that in every game.

“It’s impossible to play well in every game - players aren’t robots - but you can show is a real appetite and they showed it in abundance in France. Let’s look at the reasons why there could be this contrast. It’s one of two things: mentality or tactics.

“It is the case when you come up against teams domestically that you’re playing against compact sides who get men behind the wall but you have to find a way. But there shouldn’t be a different mindset between the two. When you meet up on day one of pre-season it’s outline that the league is the No.1 priority.

“It’s brilliant playing in Europe and it makes a lot of money for the club but the league is your bread and butter - and that includes bobbly pitches. Life as a Rangers players is learning to adjust. I know now they’ll need to roll their sleeves up against St Johnstone. I know Philippe Clement talks about new players but they’ve had time.

“I’ve been in dressing rooms where players take time to adjust but we’re 12 games in and they have to understand where they are at and what the demands and expectations are. It’s funny but this contrast between Europe and domestic is quite familiar because when Paul Le Guen came in we performed well in Europe but not domestically.

“I actually remember losing 1-0 at home to Inverness early on in that season - and then days later made history by becoming the first Scottish team to win on Italian soil with a 3-2 victory at Livorno.

“Why was that? I’ll be honest. We weren’t a good enough team to adjust. In Europe you sometimes get more time on the ball but Scottish football is a different ball game. I know the standard isn’t as good as other leagues but it’s a tough place to play and every game teams will try and rough you up.

“Thinking back, a lot of the players who came in at that time just couldn't adjust to the physical nature of Scottish football and the demands of Rangers. For this current crop, the blueprint was Thursday night in the south of France.

“I’m sure Philippe Clement would have been saying the same in the dressing room after the game, that he was delighted with the result but that the challenge is to go about their business like that in every game. St Johnstone will be buoyant after a good win against Kilmarnock last weekend and a new manager in the door. They will get in Rangers faces so they need a repeat and I would go with the same team.”