Barry Ferguson wasn’t happy with what he saw against Hibernian, who could blame him after a performance void of any sort of mental or aesthetic quality.
The interim Rangers manager reckoned that Hibs outfought his team at Ibrox on an afternoon that saw his own, however slight, hopes of keeping the job on a permanent basis all but disappear.
Individual mistakes at the back, with Jack Butland culpable again, and Cyriel Dessers just as guilty at the other end of the pitch led to a lacklustre display and very little to get excited about.
What was worrying for some, was the lack of heart or desire to make something happen from those in Light Blue.
Sometimes, it’s not just talent that is needed to succeed at Rangers with one former fans’ favourite continuing to prove the doubters wrong south of the border.
- READ MORE: Rangers target shows why current club stumped up £5m with ‘Dennis Bergkamp-esque’ stunner
Calvin Bassey continues to impress after Rangers exit
Currently punching above their weight in the Premier League table, Fulham are just five points outside of the Champions League places with a key reason being the form of Calvin Bassey.
The sort of player that Rangers need to find this summer.
Speaking on the Talksport Breakfast Show on Monday 7th of April at 0715, presenter Jeff Stelling summed up the 25-year old perfectly:
“Bassey, who might not be the best footballer in the world, but what a heart he’s got, I love watching him play,” in reference to Fulham’s 3-2 win over champions elect Liverpool.
With the 2024/25 domestic season all but over and his chances of keeping the job also slim, Ferguson has to do the right thing by the club he loves.
What this means, is playing those who might be the next Bassey.
Those at the beginning of their respective careers who have a point to prove and who don’t see Rangers as being the end point of their trajectory.
Barry Ferguson has to help find the next Calvin Bassey
Like it or not, Rangers (and the SPFL) is not where players want to end up, unless of course they are of a red, white and blue persuasion.
Players like Clinton Nsiala, for example.
Yes, he had a torrid time at Rugby Park, but he had looked impressive and keen to learn before then, and he isn’t the first centre-half to struggle against Kilmarnock on their own patch.
Filip Helander looked like Bambi on ice skates on his first trip to Livingston, but he has, arguably, been Rangers best centre-half in terms of basic defending since Carlos Cuellar and David Weir.
Nsiala is far from the finished article, but so was Bassey in his first season, and look at him now.
