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Cyriel Dessers acceptance of Rangers mediocrity is simply not going to cut it and one reluctant figure has to admit this
Even if they’re true - some things in life are just better not said. Not for the first time in his Rangers career, Cyriel Dessers missed the target last week.
But it was off the pitch, rather than on it. Let’s get one thing straight. The big Nigerian is one of the most likeable characters in the Scottish game right now. And for the media, he’s a dream. Always willing to speak, always honest and - unlike a few others at Ibrox - he never hides when the going gets tough. So, fair play to him. But when he came out after Rangers’ excellent Europa League draw against Olympiakos and said: ‘If I scored three chances in every game, I probably wouldn’t be here’, Dessers hit a bum note with fans.
Punters don’t want to hear that kind of thing, even if their front-man was accurate in his assessment. Because it strikes you as being happy to accept second best. Something this club as a whole has done for the last few years. Of course, if Dessers was flying and scoring every week, clubs abroad or in England might be after him. Might.
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But the point is, he’s not. Before notching in his last three games, he’d gone eight without a goal. And even though he’s done a decent job for Rangers since signing from Cremonese - it’s difficult to see a Clement side winning the title with Dessers up front.
Ultimately, the 29-year-old poses no threat to Old Firm rivals Celtic when the teams meet. On the other hand, Rangers’ defence looks petrified in derbies at the thought of what Kyogo Furuhashi might do to them.
With his comments in Greece, Dessers effectively told supporters to be happy with what they’ve got, which was never going to go down well. His theory could have been applied to any Gers forward over the years.
But I don’t remember Ally McCoist, Mark Hateley, Kris Boyd, Dado Prso or Nikica Jelavic ever actually saying it. The manager didn’t help matters after Sunday’s narrow win over Hearts by suggesting other strikers in the league get less criticism than Dessers despite scoring less goals.
Who was he talking about? Surely not Kyogo, who torments Rangers on a regular basis. Lawrence Shankland? The Hearts man is going through a dry spell right now but he’s still the guy who - if Clement had signed him in January - might have won him the title last season.
Instead, they got Fabio Silva in before capitulating in the league. And if the Belgian is referencing other strikers in the Premiership at places like Kilmarnock, Motherwell or wherever - what’s the point?
This is Rangers we’re talking about. Where your centre-forward has to be firing and the team must be challenging at the top of the table. Neither is happening right now.
Accepting mediocrity is never going to cut it in Glasgow. His team played poorly at the weekend. But there seems to be a reluctance from Clement to admit it. Hearts were allowed far too much of the ball for an away team at Ibrox and might have got a point had Kenneth Vargas tucked away his gilt-edged chance instead of smacking the post. If you compare the words of Dessers and Clement to those of Leon Balogun on Sunday night - the contrast is quite stark.
Dessers’ fellow Nigerian posted on his Instagram page: ‘Pleased to go into the international break with a win and clean sheet, not so pleased with how it happened’. That’s a guy who - no matter what you think of him as a player - sets high standards for himself and this Rangers team.
Balogun, remember, has been part of a title winning team at Ibrox when Steven Gerrard’s side went through a campaign undefeated before lifting the league trophy. The 36-year-old knows what’s required to get silverware.
And he knows when performances aren’t good enough. Balogun has been vocal in his criticism of the team before, even after an abysmal friendly defeat to Birmingham City in pre-season.
Standards. Not willing to accept second best. And that’s been a problem at Rangers for far too long now, with Celtic disappearing over the horizon.
The minute James Bisgrove, or whoever else was responsible, knew there had been a cock-up over the reconstruction of the Copland Road stand which would force Rangers to start the campaign at Hampden - they accepted second best. When the board moved the goalposts on their manager in the summer by cutting his budget - and leaving him with Dessers as his only viable option up front in Europe, they accepted second best.
And when the manager told people his team might eventually start to hit form around October or November, it was the same. Because every man and their dog knew the title would be gone by then.
That’s why - even if you believe something is right - it’s sometimes better not to say it publicly in this city. And if you are, at least set the right tone by taking a leaf out of Balogun’s book.
