Robin Propper sees Rangers gap to Celtic closing as Ibrox defender reckons Hampden defeat was a LOTTERY
When Rangers and Celtic met at Parkhead back in September the visitors lost by a lot. At Hampden on Sunday, Robin Propper insists the Ibrox side only lost in a lottery.
And he reckons the character that his team mates showed to fight back twice and take Celtic to penalties can be just the ticket to bigger and better things. Rangers may have lost the final and their grip on the League Cup to their fiercest rivals but, while they're well off the pace in the league, Propper says the evidence from the national stadium proved there's not much of a gap between the two when they're on their game.
Philippe Clement is still searching for his first Old Firm victory after six attempts but former FC Twente stopper Propper is adamant they are getting closer.
Three and a half months have passed since Celtic rinsed the Light Blues 3-0 at Parkhead on their way to building up their current 11 point gap between the sides at the top of the Premiership table. But for 120 minutes on the neutral ground of Hampden yesterday they matched Celtic’s energy levels, cancelled out the Hoops’ previous midfield dominance and produced their own threats going forward to net three times.
And it gives Propper huge confidence as the clock ticks down to the next clash of the Glasgow titans at Ibrox on January 2. He said: “Of course it was disappointing. On the other hand, it was a really nice game to play. We had moments to lead, to win that game. So, yeah, it felt, of course, in the end, really disappointing. But I think as well, we had some character today. We stayed positive as a team. We tried our best.
“In the end, you want to win. But I think if you see the whole game, we can be proud of ourselves. It’s one game. And you want to win this game because then directly you have a cup and a medal. So, in this game, there was not that big of a gap. It's 3-3 in the end. It's a lottery and penalties.
“So, the gap today wasn't that big. It's a game we want to win in our team, of course. We want to show it every game. If that's possible, we try our best. It was a 50-50 game.
“We showed some character twice. We had moments we could win, overtake Celtic. We have that in our team. So, we have to be focused on that to show that every day.”
The pressure on Clement and his players hit boiling point just three weeks ago after a 1-1 draw at home to Dundee United saw them fall 11 points behind the Hoops in the Premiership. But since then they have won three times without conceding in the league, thumped Ligue 1 giants Nice away from home and produced a superb Euro performance to draw at home to Tottenham on Thursday night.
Propper, who has been thrust back into the heart of defence due to an injury to John Souttar, insists the tide is turning after the ropey start to the campaign. And he reckons anything is possible if they can keep standards as high as Hampden.
He said: “Yes, of course. We are confident in what we are doing. The last couple of weeks, we are getting better. We win our away games. We win points in Europe. In the competition, we are doing better. Of course, we have confidence to be better and to improve. You see today as well, everything is possible.”
Cup glory would have been possible if the Gers had held their nerve from 12 yards. Ridvan Yilmaz was ultimately the fall guy after seeing his penalty - Rangers fourth in the shoot out - saved low to his left by Kasper Schmeichel. It was a cruel blow for the Turkey international who had climbed off the bench in the second half having only come back from injury in the last three weeks.
But there was no finger of blame in the Ibrox dressing room as his team mates rallied to console the left back. Propper said: “Of course, he stepped up to take a penalty. You know that this is part of the game. He has to keep his head up and he will do that. Yes, it's small margins. In the end, what is it about penalties? It's a lottery. You hope you're on the good side of the story. That was it today.”
Rangers have to recover from their heartache quickly with a home clash against Dundee up next. Propper was paired with Leon Balogun at Hampden but finished the game beside Dujon Sterling after the Nigeria international hobbled off injured.
He’s now had three different partners in central defence in the last week. But the Dutchman won’t be phased by the shuffling of the back. And he said: “No, of course it doesn’t bother me. We play a lot of games. Sometimes, you have to switch. It's very sad that John is injured. The next game is coming up. You have to be together as a team and talk to each other. For me, it doesn't matter who I'm playing with. In the end, we have all the quality to play there.”
