The bi-polar nature of Rangers 2024/25 season is perfectly demonstrated by the difference between some of the European and domestic performances.
The same players just a few days apart could go from a well-oiled machine capable of going toe to toe with teams from the continent’s top five leagues to then losing against a collective of journeymen.
Things haven’t improved under Barry Ferguson, if anything, the standard on display has declined with the interim Rangers manager at the helm.
Brought in to let the players know that what they were producing wasn’t acceptable, he was forced into making a statement against Athletic Club and made six changes from the dismal defeat to Hibs at Ibrox.
One of those changes did Rangers more harm than good and it was one that Ferguson simply didn’t have to make.
Robin Propper blows Rangers chance for redemption
Only 13 minutes into the Europa League quarter-final clash with Athletic and Ferguson’s game plan fell apart.
Against a quick and tricky forward line, Ferguson went with Leon Balogun, James Tavernier and Robin Propper.
An experienced defence, but not one that is blessed with pace or a known ability to deal with the fleet footed attackers of this world.
When Propper connected in a way that Balogun failed to do on Inaki Williams he was initially only punished with a yellow card, only to see the VAR team advise the referee to take another look.
It was upgraded to a red and Propper had barely broken sweat.
What was the decision that Barry Ferguson should have made?
He might still be raw, but Clinton Nsiala should have been picked to play Athletic.
Hooked in the first half against Kilmarnock in Ferguson’s first game, it could just as easily have been Propper that went off instead.
As a natural lefty, Nsiala would have given more balance, rather than Balogun and Propper both trying to challenge with the ‘wrong’ foot and getting caught out of shape.
Ferguson had said he was going to make changes, and Propper has done little to suggest that his future is at Rangers.
Nsiala, on the other hand, has shown more than Calvin Bassey who is flying for Fulham in the Premier League, did in his first 10 games and tipped to move onto bigger, and better things.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but when positive changes needed to be made, restoring Propper to the starting XI wasn’t one of them.
