Gio van Bronckhorst reeks of Rangers desperation after embarrassing 'took over' Celtic claim - Hotline

Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s claim that Rangers “took over” after 25 minutes of their derby drubbing has caused a bit of stir.

Hotline callers took the Dutchman to task over his claim and reckon he was wildly wide of the mark with his assessment.

The champions went down 3-0 at Parkhead but Van Bronckhorst said after a Hoops whirlwind start they got to grips midway through the first half - despite conceding two more goals before the break.

Eddie Easson, Ballingry, said: “Van Bronckhorst must have been in one of those famous Amsterdam coffee shops when he made his 25-minute statement.”

Thomas Black emailed: “What game was Giovanni van Bronckhorst watching? It certainly wasn’t the same game as me.

“Rangers dominated after 25 minutes? They were not in the game in the first half. Celtic did not let them and it could have been five, six or 7-0 to Celtic if it was’t for Allan McGregor trying to make amends for his Ross County display.

“He stopped it from being a rout and Celtic took their foot off the gas in the second half.”

Liam Birney emailed: “Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s comments about taking control of the Glasgow Derby after 25 minutes are a combination of desperation, embarrassment and fan appeasement.

“He’s kidding no-one. There is the old adage that you can fool some of the people some of the time but not all of the people all of the time. He fooled no one with his words.”

Adam Gordon, East Lothian, said: “Had to laugh at Giovanni van Bronckhorst saying they took control of the derby after 25 minutes. Yeah, took control of a sinking ship.”

Some of Rangers’ problems predated Van Bronckhorst’s arrival and John Bruce emailed: “Before Steven Gerrard left Rangers, there was a lack of fight in the team.

“It was also