Gio van Bronckhorst's Rangers 'can't compete' claim slammed as he is urged to follow brutal Ibrox icon tactic

Bobby Russell was part of the last Rangers squad to lose four goals in two games on the bounce. That was 40 years ago against an Aberdeen side that would go on to conquer Europe 12 months later. John Greig’s team had to stew on that double Dons drubbing for an entire summer after their final league game of the 1981-82 season ended in a 4-0 Pittodrie thumping followed by a 4-1 Scottish Cup Final defeat after extra time.

But after a summer of soul-searching they bounced back by going 17 games unbeaten at the start of the next campaign. Russell reckons the current squad are lucky they only have to wait a matter of days for the chance to get their Old Firm and Amsterdam misery out their system.

And while some in light blue might be living in fear of another horror show when Napoli come to town Russell thinks the exact opposite. The 65-year-old is confident they can get a result and grab a foothold on a Champions League campaign threatening to slide off the chart before it’s barely begun.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s claim that Rangers can’t compete at that level was controversial and doesn’t wash with Russell, who insists club legend Greig would be reacting to two heavy defeats with actions rather than words. He said: “I didn’t see Gio van Bronckhorst’s comments but they seem a bit strange. Sometimes managers don’t quite get their message over the way they mean and I hope that’s the case here.

“I played under Greig and Jock Wallace and I can’t imagine them ever suggesting their teams couldn’t compete at any level. What would they have done? They’d have made changes. The other night the only change was Scott Wright in for Steven Davis.

“You’ve got two games where they have conceded eight goals so there’s got to be changes