Tottenham loanee thanks Danny Rohl for Ibrox redemption arc as he strives to prove Rangers doubters wrong
The Rangers winger believes the manager’s belief in him has given him a new lease of life.
As Rangers gear up to face Hibs for the second time under Danny Rohl’s stewardship, a current player has said he thinks the reverse fixture was a turning point in his Ibrox career.
In what was Rohl’s second Scottish Premiership match earlier on in the season at Easter Road, the Gers sneaked back from Edinburgh with all three points thanks to an early Danilo strike. They also had Jack Butland to thank as he saved a late Jamie McGrath penalty to keep them ahead on the scoreline in Leith.
The Capital grudge match was also the breakout game for Mikey Moore, who before that had struggled to hit the ground running in a Rangers jersey. The 18-year old winger signed from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer on a season-long loan deal.
Under Russell Martin, Moore was only able to register one goal contribution for Rangers, which came in the form of an assist against Alloa Athletic in the Scottish League Cup. However, since Rohl’s arrival, the young English prospect has turned a corner, scoring two goals so far despite a short-term injury and generally looking more confident with the ball at his feet.
Hibs away the turning point for Moore
The winger told Glasgow Times he believes the Hibs game was the catalyst for him getting more game-time and that the motivation behind his performances was to prove his doubters wrong. He said: “I think the Hibs game was the start of me getting a bit of a run in the team.
“I showed bits in the game. I think that was the start of me getting a bit of rhythm and getting going. It was a good game for me, but I think Hibs on Monday, I need to keep showing a lot more than what I did in that game and keep building on what I've done so far.
“What’s been the spark for me? It's hard to stick it to one thing, but I think for me always people were saying stuff to me and I was thinking, ‘Shut up, I'm going to change it myself’. The manager’s given me confidence, but it's down to me to go and perform on the pitch.”
Rohl ‘believes in me’
Moore went onto say that Rohl’s belief in him has helped him re-find his spark, but also admits it is down to himself individually to keep his confidence high. He continued: “so, for me it was always going to change at some point.
“I believed in myself. It’s starting to change now when I'm showing bits and hopefully the fans are seeing a bit more of what I do. But I can do a lot more than what I've done. I've spoken to the manager a lot and he believes in me and he knows the sort of things I can do. He's given me that belief in myself which shouldn't just come from somewhere else. It needs to come from me as well.
“He's given me that belief that I can go and be one of the main men and I can kind of help the team in a way with goals and assists and just my all-round performance as well.”