Derek McInnes, manager of Rangers, believes his squad has established a vital reference point following their decisive three-goal victory against Celtic. The win in the Premier Sports Cup quarter-final, featuring a brace from skipper Dan Neil and a strike from Kevin Kelsy, has provided the team with a blueprint for future success.
McInnes, experiencing his first Old Firm derby as manager, highlighted the team's performance as a significant step forward, particularly in overcoming recent early-season difficulties. "I think it’s a good reference," McInnes stated. "Obviously, when you’re playing against a team like Celtic, you are not going to get it all your own way."
The team's strategy involved playing with calculated risk, exposing Celtic to one-on-one situations and high intensity. "We had to play with a bit of risk and we exposed them to a lot of one-on-ones in certain areas," McInnes explained. "But I just felt as though for us to tap into the crowd, we had to go and play the way we did today."
The manager emphasized the players' responsibility in executing the performance, from defensive work and winning challenges to scoring goals at opportune moments. "The players have to go and deliver the performance — running the hard yards, winning the challenges, winning the one-on-ones. We scored goals in good times, something we’ve not been doing. And the quality of the goals were terrific today."
This commanding victory comes just over two weeks after Rangers were eliminated from the Conference League. McInnes contrasted the recent performance with the "lacklustre" display in that earlier match, noting the significant improvement. "The performance that night was in complete contrast to today because it was a big game for us as a club," he said. "To deliver such a lacklustre performance, a performance that I wouldn’t want to put my name to... I had to deal with that."
Since that setback, Rangers have secured five consecutive domestic wins. McInnes feels the team's culture is solidifying, with players demonstrating mutual support. "I think the dressing room is exactly how I need my dressing room to be," he commented. "I need us to take care of each other, I need us to love each other, I need us to be there for each other."
McInnes also noted tactical adjustments, including a forward pairing of Ryan Naderi and Kelsy, and flexibility in midfield. He praised the team's aggression and compactness, whether pressing high or in a lower block. "I thought we never really gave Celtic a minute. When we couldn’t get full press on, we got into a lower block and we were nice and compact."
He reserved specific praise for Neil, who scored two goals of different styles. "He gets the light shining on him a wee bit today because of the goals, but I thought his performance was really strong as well."
Looking ahead, McInnes stressed the importance of maintaining momentum and cautioned against complacency. "We need to keep our shoulder to the wheel. And you can see next week as well, we’ve got preparation to get ready for that one with Celtic next week and they are not going to just let us get away with that. They’ll come back again next week, and we’ve got to be ready for that as well."
McInnes acknowledged the boost the derby win provides for player confidence and fan buy-in, but reiterated the need for continued effort. "I think that you get a lot of good if they win a derby game. Because we need to get the buy-in from the fans. We need the players to think that what we’re doing is right as well. I think we take the good from it, the confidence, but it can quickly change."
