Rangers defender Leon Balogun has revealed details of a brutally honest team meeting held following the club's shocking run of five consecutive home defeats, with the Nigerian international insisting the squad is determined to turn things around ahead of Thursday's crucial Europa League quarter-final against Athletic Club.
The crisis talks, called by interim manager Barry Ferguson after Saturday's disappointing loss to Hibernian, took place at Rangers' Auchenhowie training complex on Monday, with players and staff engaged in what Balogun described as a "no filter" conversation about their alarming form at Ibrox.
"I think it was just a very straightforward and honest conversation, which needed to be held," Balogun explained during Wednesday's pre-match press conference. "Because we all know that recent performances, domestically especially, haven't been good enough."
The 36-year-old defender, who returned to Rangers during the summer of 2023 after a brief spell at Queens Park Rangers, didn't shy away from acknowledging the severity of the situation facing the Glasgow giants, who have traditionally made Ibrox a fortress.
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"If you lose five on the spin at Ibrox, at this club, it's not something you should be able to accept," said Balogun. "So, yeah, it was very open, no filter, but with a very positive outcome.
“I'm sure you'll understand that I cannot give you any nitty-gritty there, but if you see how the conversation went, and how honest and straightforward it was, and what we started to talk about, there were definitely some things that needed to be said that needed to be heard. And, like I said, it led to a positive outcome as a group."
The alarming home slump began during Philippe Clement's final days in charge, with defeats to Queen's Park and St Mirren, but has continued unabated under Ferguson's stewardship with Motherwell, Fenerbahce and Hibernian all securing victories at the famous Glasgow venue.
When pressed on whether Rangers players were struggling to handle the pressure of performing at Ibrox, Balogun was quick to dismiss the suggestion.
"You would have to ask each player individually," he stated. "Again, you look at performances here that we had in the past, and you might think it's hard to say that. You can't really put your finger on it.
The experienced centre-back instead pointed to a broader issue affecting the team this season. "I think that overall we just lack consistency this season. I can't say it's down to the fact that it's Ibrox. I'd like not to think so, just based on my own experience here."
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Balogun, who has featured in many memorable European nights at Ibrox during his two spells at the club, shared his personal appreciation for playing in front of the Rangers faithful.
"Yes, I've been in some tough games, but overall it's a joy to be here, to play in front of 50,000, every single game," he added.
"So I would like to think that this is not a problem, it's more a problem of consistency. It just makes it worse that it happens to be this season that at Ibrox we seem to struggle more than ever.
"There's things to make up for, definitely. As much as there have been things this season that we gave back to them, we need to give them more of those moments. That's, I think, indisputable."
