Being Rangers manager should be the biggest honour of your life. But I actually felt sorry for my old team-mate Steven Davis on Thursday night.
What I expected to see from the players in Cyprus was an ADDED effort for Davo. After all, some of them played with him. The rest know him. He’s been in and around the place, ironically, trying to get himself back fit to help them on the pitch. They said before the game against Aris Limassol that they’ve got great respect for him as a club legend and incredible footballer.
So I thought the players would have shown a bit of pride for him and also themselves. I expected to see desire and passion. That might sound like dinosaur language now and old school. But there’s still a lot of value in things like running about and tackling. It’s about showing you care for the badge you’re wearing. Those things matter to me. And it gets to me when I don’t see it –because as a player, that’s what I displayed.
Whether I was good, bad or indifferent, irrespective of what club I was at, I always felt I was giving a lot to the team. I was lucky to play in some top teams with great players. And I always felt I gave my all for the cause. On Thursday night with Davo at the helm, I thought that was the least the players would give for him. But I just didn’t see it.
Let’s be honest, Aris aren’t a great team. They’re no European super-power. They aren’t even a big club in Cyprus. So it was a chance to salvage something for the club, while giving Davo a performance to be proud of in the dug-out. But a lot of the characteristics I’ve spoken about were missing. And that’s before you even start talking about quality. When you’re bereft of confidence, it’s not easy to play well.
But the other stuff? That
Football
Rangers
record
show
Pride
performer
Inside
Manager
Steven Davis