Barry Ferguson wants to do himself and Rangers proud during his time in charge and get a reaction out of the players.
And he certainly did that this week as Gers beat Fenerbache with an immense away performance in the Europa League, after a brilliant fightback at Kilmarnock before letting themselves down against Motherwell.
It is expected he will only be in charge at Ibrox for the rest of this season but you just never know in football.
Plenty of people with links to the club have given their approval for Fergie being appointed in the short term, Graeme Souness hailing him as a “Rangers man.”
Mark Hateley agreed, saying Ferguson is what the club needs at this time.
The 47-year-old has now had a very unlikely backer as he tries to navigate the temporary Rangers manager’s job.
Neil Lennon backs Ferguson at Rangers
Neil Lennon and Ferguson were fierce competitors and rivals over a number of years in Old Firm derbies.
Lennon has also been in the same position across the city as interim manager at Celtic.
So he knows all about the challenges involved with doing the role but is backing his old rival to carry it out.
He told the Daily Record: “I see Barry is saying they’re his players but he has inherited this Rangers squad.
“And now he’s finding things out about them, like what buttons to press. It’s not all about coming in with fire and brimstone. Because these Rangers players obviously have a fragility about them. And they shouldn’t have.
“They beat Kilmarnock – when I thought they did well – and Barry made a strong substitution that proved to be correct at a difficult venue. You would have thought they’d have a bit of momentum after that but then it flipped against Motherwell at Ibrox.
“It was the total opposite, conceding two goals to a struggling side. So it must be difficult for Barry to put his finger on what the problem is.
“It’s whether Barry gets that response or not. But it’s difficult with Celtic to come.”
Motherwell result would have hurt Ferguson
Lennon added: “The respect I had for Barry was huge. He was captain of Rangers at a young age in a team full of superstars. He was a class player, a winner – but a top footballer. Obviously the club meant a lot to him and he had to carry that responsibility.
“It couldn’t have been easy for him but he carried it really well. Is that difficult when you’re a manager? You have to park all that. You know the expectations and what it means on a personal level. But you have a job to do regardless.
“It helps that you do have an understanding. It’s not like you’re coming in from the cold. Straight away you know the demands unlike someone coming in from Europe. Myself and Barry know what the fans expect at Rangers and Celtic. The question is, can you deliver it?
“I couldn’t believe their result against Motherwell last week, I have to say. It was damaging. It’s been awful from Rangers. Their away form has been poor domestically and now they’ve lost three home games in a row.
“That’s unacceptable. This team only seems to raise its game when they’re underdogs. I don’t like being critical. I’m looking at it as a neutral.”
