Rangers Fan View: On the right track - at last

This season for Rangers started off with the European exit, which was completely embarrassing. However, I am the of the belief that things aren’t as they are made out to be. Having said that, we are very much a work in progress.

On the back of that dreadful European result and others, including a season low point of losing to Motherwell in the Betfred Cup, Pedro Caixinha was constantly under pressure and ultimately he would go on to lose his job. But throughout that turmoil, we have played some good football at times, with the most pleasing aspect of our season so far being our away form. The wins over St Johnstone and Hearts have been particular highlights.

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Our home form, however, has been absolutely awful. Losing to Hibs and Celtic was bad enough but following the defeats up with draws against Hearts and Kilmarnock was frustrating. We have only managed two wins from six in the league and that quite frankly is unacceptable. That’s something the new manager will have to put right when he is eventually appointed.

Overall, if we compare this season – after 12 league games – to last season, it’s abundantly clear we have improved both points-wise and goal difference-wise. Currently, we have 24 points and a plus 14 goal difference; last season after the same amount of games, we had 19 points and a goal difference of plus one. That being said, we should have more points than we have at this point in time but considering the changes to the playing squad, we have done quite well in that regard. If we factor in that we only sit six points off the top of the table at this juncture, and we haven’t played well on a consistent basis, it gives me positive vibes heading towards the winter break.

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Player-wise, we have had some good individual performances. And we’ve also had some performances that haven’t exactly set the heather alight so far.

In terms of the players who I feel have underperformed so far, Kenny Miller has to be somewhere close to the top of that list. He has four goals but the Hearts performance apart, he’s been disappointing. He’s been playing like a man who has to do everything on his own instead of playing his role as a striker. It’s frustrating because when he plays through the middle, on the shoulder of the last defender, he can be a massive threat to opponents and a plus for us.

Both Mexicans, the jury is very much out on them. Pena is a strange one. He looks like he has never seen a footballer before at times, but then can produce a piece of sublime movement or find himself in the right place at the right time to score. You can see what Herrera brings to the side. He’s a good link man and could get a few more goals but he certainly needs more playing time. The two goals he has scored have been good, calm finishes.

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In terms of good performances, I have been most impressed by Daniel Candeias. The winger seems like he can run all day long as well as produce quality deliveries into the box. He and James Tavernier have re-invented our right-hand side from an attacking point of view. Watching them link up so far has been a joy at times. Between them, they have contributed 11 assists – five from Candeias and six from Tavernier.

Alfredo Morelos has been superb as well. He leads the line so well and he’s bagged eight so far. I can only see a massive improvement in him going forward. His willingness to be unselfish and help the team as a whole is something that has caught my eye. I never expected him to be as well-rounded as he is, to be honest.

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Ryan Jack and Graham Dorrans have played well in spells. Weirdly, they haven’t really hit it off as a partnership as of yet. However, pre-injury we were seeing the Graham Dorrans that we all thought we would be getting when he signed; someone who would dictate the game as well as score goals. Hopefully he can continue that form when he recovers from injury.

It’s also been good to see youngsters like Ross McCrorie, Ryan Hardie and Jamie Barjonas from the academy get game time, especially in the case of McCrorie as his performances have put him into the reckoning to gain a regular starting slot in the defence.

The first quarter has had many ups and downs but I still feel we are on the right track to have a decent season. I feel we are one big win away from the team really kicking on. I think the new manager when he comes in will be pleased with some of the quality he has at his disposal.