Barry Ferguson insists the Rangers players have to take responsibility for their bruising defeat to Celtic.
For the second time in three visits, the Gers found themselves three goals down against their rivals before the break after being blitzed by Ange Postecoglou’s men in the opening 45 minutes. A Liel Abada double either side of Jota’s stylish finish floored Rangers well before David Turnbull added a fourth in the second half thanks to Jon McLaughlin’s blunder.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst spoke before the match about not being caught cold again as his team were in the 3-0 loss back in February. But more than once, his players switched off and Celtic took full advantage with quick set pieces to punish them. He reiterated after full-time that the point was made in the build up about not switching off, but his charges failed to take heed once they crossed the white line.
Ferguson acknowledged that his former teammate was the one that picked the players and how they’d play. But the manager can't legislate for basic lapses of concentration after specifically telling his players they had to be wise to how Celtic speed the game up.
“The players need to take some responsibility,” he told GO radio. “I know the manager puts a team out there in terms of tactics and formation, the players have got to take responsibility and at the end of the day, Celtic blew them away at the weekend, which I never saw coming.
“I knew it was going to be a tough place to go and get a result. But I didn’t think it was going to be what happened on Saturday.
“In terms of personnel, I was surprised that there wasn't a forward-thinking central midfielder in there. I did think Scotty Arfield would have played on the right will Tillman central with Kamara and Lundstram. But he went with three pretty similar players, more like the holding side of it.
“Listen, see the stats? Forget about possession. Celtic could have 80 per cent and we could have 20. It’s all about the result.
“It’s about the mistakes that Rangers made on the pitch and I go back to it, switching off. You can't switch off against a good team.
“The manager spoke after the game and said that was one of the conversations, of a number of conversations, leading up to the game. If you watch Celtic every single week, it’s evident what they do. As soon as the ball’s out, there’s another one in their player’s hand ready to go.
“Energy, and a quickness to their game. You can’t turn your back on it.”
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