Barry Ferguson has offered an insight into his managerial style as Rangers prepare for another huge European night away from home.
The interim boss will lead his side into battle against Athletic Club in Bilbao tonight with the Europa League quarter-final tie finely poised after last week’s goalless first leg at Ibrox.
It’s a stage Rangers know well, having fallen just short of glory in the 2022 final under Giovanni van Bronckhorst. Now, with a place in the last four and a potential showdown against Manchester United or Lyon at stake, Ferguson is eager to see his players meet the moment.
When asked what kind of figure he is in the dressing room before a game of this magnitude, Ferguson said: "I don’t like to say too much in the lead up, I allow my coaches to do a bit of that. I obviously have the final decision and say certain things.
"But before the game and the players step out on the pitch, I have a couple of minutes with them. You can imagine what is being said."
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Ferguson admits his approach may have taken some getting used to, but believes his standards are now clear.
"Maybe at the start it was a bit strange for them, but now they are getting used to what I am like just before a game, because listen, every game I enter, I want to win — and I want my players to be like that."
Rangers are now just 90 minutes, plus possible extra time and penalties, away from another European semi-final, and Ferguson will be demanding the same grit and determination that defined his own playing career on the continent
