Pedro Caixinha has been Rangers manager for less than a month but he already appears to be settling into the role has Ibrox boss nicely. A fine victory over Hamilton Academical nearly two weeks ago certainly added to the feeling of optimism around his arrival.
He faces a similar test this weekend, welcoming Motherwell to Ibrox on Saturday who aren’t just close to Hamilton geographically but also in terms of Scottish Premiership points.
The Steelmen are just three points above the relegation positions in the table and visit Caixinha’s side desperate for a result to help keep them clear of any danger. They’ve appointed a new manager recently too, former Oldham boss Steve Robinson, so it’s set to be a very intriguing match-up for both sets of supporters.
Caixinha has had a very welcome international break to give him time to effect change on the training ground at Auchenhowie and supporters will expect to see him begin to stamp his authority on performances going forward.
Here are THREE signs of improvement fans should be looking for in the weeks to come…
A defence focused on defence
A reoccurring feature of Rangers’ season has been their inability to perform consistently in a defensive sense compared to Aberdeen or Celtic. Both clubs have conceded far fewer goals in the league, looking like teams that are able to grind out results without the pressure of having to find more than one goal for results.
One of the main criticisms fans levelled at Mark Warburton’s side was the likes of James Tavernier neglecting their defensive duties in order to try and impact on the game in an attacking sense.
More pragmatism in this sense would go a long way to shoring up the leaky backline and could be the difference between consistent results reverting back to the form we saw under Waburton.
If Pedro Caixinha can rein in that natural tendency to burst forward and instruct Tavernier to only commit himself into the final third when it makes sense, the entire unit will be stronger.
A Rangers will to win
There may be a big difference between the quality of Rangers and Celtic this season but one thing that still links both is the expectancy to win every single match. That pressure is something that only surrounds 7 or 8 clubs in the whole of Britain.
For Rangers supporters, that determination and will to win has been missing from the performances of their team. They didn’t show that swagger or belief under Mark Warburton this season and haven’t since the first half of their Championship winning season. Since the start of 2016, they’ve gradually lost belief they are a Rangers team.
They arguably regained some of that self-belief under Graeme Murty but now it’s up to Pedro Caixinha to instil that motivation and passion into them again. It’ll be interesting to see them start to win matches they struggle in and against teams that show up for a battle.
Has Caixinha’s two weeks of focused training ground work managed to inspire them to become a classic Rangers team once again? It’s often not about ability but about harnessing this inherent belief they are an unbeatable Scottish institution, especially at Ibrox.
A team that works for each other
Rangers have rarely shown a team unity this season. Most good results have come about due to individual performances or moments of magic.
The one time they did show unity was recently and a sign that things are about to get better for supporters at Ibrox. Up against it at Celtic Park against the Scottish Champions, they came back from 1-0 down to draw level very late in the game.
The most impressive thing about that wasn’t Clint Hill’s late winner, it was that the equaliser looked almost inevitable from the 60 minute mark onwards. They were a team that fought for each other, backed each other and were unselfish in their outlook on the match.
If Rangers are to overhaul Aberdeen or win the Scottish Cup this season, that needs to become a regular trait of Pedro Caixinha’s side.
A siege mentality has to be created at Ibrox, they need to believe they are a team that has something to prove, not just to supporters or wider Scottish football but to themselves as teammates.
Has Caixinha managed to tap into that since his first match?