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Latest NewsWeek Beginning 13 December 1997 20 December 1997 "Hearts haven't surprised me this season. They've built up a decent squad of players and it was not unexpected when they showed so much consistency in the first half of the season. The three sides at the top have opened a gap over the other seven so every game between Hearts, Celtic and us is going to be important. But we can't take our eye off the other games. We've already dropped points against teams from the other part of the division and that has cost us." Smith is pleased though that his injury problems are beginning to clear up. He said, "it's been a frustrating season for injurieswith so many players playing in fits and starts, or not at all. Goram actually damaged his hamstring in a collision with Albertz in training but hopefully both he and Gough will be fit for next week. Although we still have injury problems, at least we will be able to choose from a similar squad from last week, which is positive. As far as Rozental and Amoruso are concerned it will be well into January before they start playing, and then they'll need a few weeks to get fully fit." Jonas Thern is back in Sweden after his children contracted a mystery virus. He said, "it is always worrying when your family is ill, especially your children. My daughter Alicia and son Simon were both very unwell but Alicia is showing some signs of recovery. It would have been impossible for me to concentrate on football while Simon is so poorly and I am grateful to Walter Smith for recognising that fact. I don't want to go into exactly what the doctors have said but we are concerned that they are baffled by the symptoms. Brian Laudrup and Jorg Albertz will return today but Rangers continue to be affected by a string of call-offs. Richard Gough and Andy Goram will be missing because of hamstring injuries, while Jonas Thern has returned to Sweden because of a family illness. Paul Gascoigne also misses out through suspension. Ruud Gullit has denied reports he is ready quit Chelsea to become Rangers' new coach. He said, "we've asked when the meeting between my6self and the Rangers chairman was supposed to have taken place and it's impossible. On that afternoon I was out playing golf with my assistant Gwyn Williams. I just don't understand why there is all this speculation. I've already said that I will sign the new contract. What I am not going to do is say I will sign it on such and such a date just because the press want me to. Let me and Chelsea decide when we've got time to sit down and discuss it. But we know already that we want to stick with each other. I don't want to go, and Chelsea don't want me to go. It's a matter of when I sign the new contract, not if."
"You can train normally for a week but playing in games is different and that's where the problems begin. The fracture has now healed up without a problem and I am ready to begin playing again. The chiropractor I went to see in Denmark explained to me that when your pelvis moves out of line, one leg becomes longer than the other and you run the wrong way. It has been a frustrating season for me because I have only played 14 games and never really been fit. I don't think I will be able to play the full 90 minutes against Hearts on Saturday, but that is up to the manager. I think it is certain that I will be in the squad." "It's great to see a challenge from Edinburgh as well as Celtic this season. It means we don't just have to worry about our old rivals, this time we have to beat Hearts as well. They have shown tremendous consistency to keep winning games throughout the season. People say they haven't beaten the Old Firm but they have shown you can lose to Rangers and Celtic and still stay up there. Even if we beat them on Saturday we'll only be one point ahead of them. I think they can go all the way and cause problems for us for the rest of the season." "I always enjoy playing against Hearts and it's a bit different this time because they are top of the league. On their day they can cause any team problems. They've surprised everybody. Individually they are solid and they've also got players who can create damage. Celtic will always challenge us for the title but Hearts are definitely in there as well. With all the injury worries we've had we're not in as strong a position as we've been in recent seasons. I don't believe it's just a case of us getting in front and running away with it, we'll have been through a battle when the season is over." Rangers have secured some land in the West End of Glasgow for a new training complex. The club has agreed to buy an 11 acre site in Balgray from Kelvinside Academy. David Murray announced, "I am very pleased, I couldn't have wished for anything better. We know it is long overdue but it's been difficult getting a greenfield site near the centre of Glasgow." "The players will spend their time there during the week, instead of at Ibrox. We'll build new dressing rooms and have equipment for the physios to deal with injuries. There's no point in having them going to Ibrox, then travel to Balgray and return to Ibrox again. It's a central location, and it suits our purposes completely. The change will be made over the next two years. We have an initial agreement to lease the ground from the school, who aim to develop a new facility at Milngavie." Jorg Albertz has written off Celtic and Hearts title challenges in German sports magazine Kicker. He said, "Celtic can buy as many players as they want. We will still end up leaving them far behind us. Can Hearts be taken seriously as title challengers? They are having a good run at the moment, but they are certain to collapse at some time. Therefore we will go on to win the championship once again." "Whether I will see out my contract with Rangers or head back to the Bundesliga is completely up in the air. It is possible that I will return. But I feel very happy at Rangers, so I could even end up extending my contract. Once the time comes around I will take advice on what to do." Antti Niemi could be back in action for Rangers reserves this weekend. The Finnish international has been out for almost three months after fracturing his finger twice in the space of three weeks. Walter Smith will continue to have a role at Ibrox after he relinquishes the managerial hotseat at the end of the season. The latest candidate mentioned as a replacement is Chelsea manager Ruud Gullit. David Murray said, "no-one has been offered the coach's job and no-one has been appointed. So far I've spoken to two candidates, with Walter joining me on one occasion." "It will be the New Year before decisions are taken. One thing is certain, though, we'll be changing from the old fashioned method of management where one individual does everything. We are appointing a first team coach as opposed to a manager. Walter will still have a major role to play, provided he is happy with it. I believe an asset like him shouldn't leave the club." Hearts manager Jim Jeffries has admitted that his side have to beat Rangers this weekend to prove that they are genuine title contenders. He said, "we have not beaten the Old Firm in three attempts already this season but to use these statistics as a guideline is like accepting defeat before the event. It's a totally negative attitude, and this is not the way we go about our business at Hearts. Also, don't forget you can beat Rangers and Celtic and still lose out on the title, so let's just take it one game at a time." "My squad has been told to forget mathematics and concentrate on playing the sort of football they are capable of. Then, maybe, we can add three points to our total. Of course, this is not going to be east, but nothing is in this game. The bottom line is that a win on Saturday would not only guarantee us those points but it would keep us top of the league and raise out Christmas spirits."
"It is a different job from the one I have had because you miss the daily contact with the players. As a club manager, it is possible to have much more influence on the players because you are working with them from day to day. I enjoyed working with the national team, but it is time for a change. I will be taking a holiday over Christmas and the New Year and we will see what happens after that. " "I have not spoken to my Nephew Joachim Bjorklund about the speculation linking me with a move to Rangers, but I have talked to him about life in Scotland. I get the impression he is very pleased with the way things are going for him in Glasgow and he certainly speaks highly of Rangers." Hearts player Stevie Fulton believes they must beat Rangers this weekend to prove that they are title contenders. He said, "I think it would only be natural if we got a tinge of doubt at the back of our minds if we lost to Rangers. I would not be surprised if there were players who lost a bit of self-belief if that happened, and that could kill us. There is no hiding the importance of this match but you just have to look at the league table with Hearts two points clear at the top, to see we still have a part to play in the Championship this season. But when it comes down to it the we are desperate to beat Rangers. It seems that is the only way we can show how serious we are about winning this league." Rangers have had their ticket allocation doubled for the Old Firm match at Parkhead on 2 January. The Ibrox club were furious when Celtic cut their share of tickets to 3,000 for the November match but the ticket allocation has now been returned to normal and Rangers will receive more than 7,000 for the East Stand.
Seb Rozental is on target for a return to first team action in the Old Firm clash on 2 January. Walter Smith said, "Seb is doing very well now. He's been back from South America for a week and his training has been stepped up. He's coping very well and there doesn't appear to be any problem. He's undergoing morning and afternoon sessions and next week he'll start concentrating on football, rather than just physical exercise. After that, we will arrange one or two practice games for him and hopefully his progress will continue." "Alan McLaren is also back on the road to recovery. He still has a bit further to go than Seb, but he's also getting there. He is training comfortably enough, but it will be into the New Year before he is likely to take part in any kind of game. We have a lot of players who I consider to be very influential to our team on the way back very soon. Hopefully we can then start to get some sort of regular side out every week." Reserve coach John Brown was seething last night after watching his side score in the last minute to beat Ross County 3-2 in a testimonial match. He said, "that performance was just not good enough. I let the players know that although we won I was very disappointed. We are always trying to get more out of our players and what they delivered against County was poor. To their credit, Ross County made us work very hard. But our players should have been able to give something extra." Ally McCoist failed a late fitness test in Inverness and was unable to play. The Rangers side was: Rae, Wright, Bollan, Petric, Wilson, Ferguson, Boyack, Ferguson, Johannsen, Durrant, Fitzgerald.
Richard Gough looks certain to miss Saturday's match against Hearts at Tynecastle. Gough was injured when he jumped for a high ball and came down aggravating his hamstring. Walter Smith said, "Richard is very doubtful for Saturday, but hopefully he won't be out for longer than that." Brian Laudrup, Andy Goram and Jorg Albertz will all restart training today and should be fit by the weekend. Jonas Thern has echoed Walter Smith's words and urged his teammates to take up the slack while Brian Laudrup and Paul Gascoigne are missing. He said, "I always feel a responsibility when I play, every player has to feel that way when he plays for a big club. It's not up to two or three people. If you're with a big club, you all have to share the responsibility. When Brian and Gazza are playing they take the ball, run with it and do something special with it. But if all players were like them that wouldn't be so good either, you need a mixture." "Two players like that in a team can make a difference. But when they're missing, you've still got to win the game by playing well and working hard. We played much better than Dunfermline, but if you don't score goals you don't win the game. After my injury, I've had to work really hard to get to full fitness. Something is still missing and it's hard to say when I will be back at my best level. I'll keep working hard and do my best in every game. It's difficult for the fans to have patience. I played for Benfica when they were a very big club in Europe and they were expected to win every week. It's the same here with Rangers but the opposition make it very hard, especially away from home. It's not easy but we have to give all we have to win more games." Dunfermline defender Dave Barnett accused Rino Gattuso of cheating after the Italian went down clutching his face after a clash between the two. Barnett said, "I went in for a tackle with him and we got into a tangle, then he fell down for no reason whatsoever. I was not happy with that and let him know but at the end I shook his hand and there was no problem."
"As far as I am concerned, to be an international manager is the very top level of football but when one of the Benfica candidates came to me and asked if I would be interested in the job there I went to Lisbon to talk with him and the vice-president and hear their plans. To be manager of a club like Benfica would have been a very exciting job and they were prepared to pay very big compensation to the Finnish FA. But I am very glad of my job with Finland and I would never have let them down. I never said that I would absolutely go to Benfica but it came out in the press and there was a big story in the Finnish media about the FA not letting me go." "I recommended Brian Laudrup to go to Rangers. Brian is a person who does not think only about football but also very much about his family. I told him the people here would treat him well and they have done. He also believed he could make something happen at Rangers and believe me, he is proud of being part of the Rangers family too. And he has become a better player in Scotland. People in the rest of Europe think the game in Scotland is not so good because Scottish teams have not done so well in European competitions recently, but I believe it is not so easy for a player to come here and learn to be quick thinking, which is necessary because of the speed of the football in this country." "The greatest compliment you can pay a coach is to say that he gets the best from his players and that he has developed their skills. Walter Smith is right to say that it is not easy to win championships in Scotland even if Rangers can go and buy good players. The game is so competitive that he has to make sure that his good players are competitive too and you can see from Brian Laudrup that it is a side of his game which has improved." " I think it will be interesting to see what happens with Walter. Like Walter, I said in good time that I was leaving when I decided to give up the job with Denmark. You know when the time has come, but I think that after a while Walter will miss the daily routine with his players. I understand that Rangers have said there is a job for him at Ibrox but his name will start to be mentioned for many other teams. I cannot imagine him taking on another team in Scotland after Rangers but there are other clubs which might attract him. To be honest, I don't know if Rangers can keep him." Rangers have brought two Brazilians to Ibrox for a week's trial. The unnamed players who are both 18 are a striker from Gremio and a midfielder from Sao Paulo. Both players are out of contract so no transfer fee would be involved but neither of the youngsters hold an EC passport so Rangers would face work permit problems if they decided to sign either player . Walter Smith is lining up a £1.2 million bid for 20 year old Carlisle striker Matthew Jansen. Rangers have already held talks with Carlisle chairman Michael Knighton about the player. Smith is also interested in signing 20 year old Peterborough goalkeeper Mark Tyler but he will face stiff competition from Liverpool who have already had a £750,000 offer turned down. Craig Moore returned to Ibrox this week and was surprised to hear his team-mates commiserate with him after Australia's failure to qualify for the World Cup. He said, "I was gutted at missing out and as soon as I walked into the ground Gazza, Coisty and Goram tried to cheer me up. I appreciated that but the next day they were slagging me and rubbing it in. But they've told me if I want to go and join them they'll try and get me a ticket and I might take them up on that." "There are other guys like Jonas Thern, Jocky Bjorklund and Antti Niemi whose countries also failed to qualify but they knew it a while ago and I remember telling them how sorry I felt for them. But I didn't fully appreciate exactly what they were going through, until now." Walter Smith insisted that David Murray had not asked him for advice on Rangers new manager. He said, "you'll have to ask the chairman if I'll be consulted in the future. I haven't as yet but if he wants to talk to me about it then it is definitely fine by me."
Rangers Snelders 6 Cleland 6 Stensaas 6 Gough 5 Porrini 5 Bjorklund 5 Thern 8 McCall 6 Negri 5 Gattuso 7 Durie 4 Bollan 3 (Sub) Durrant 1 (Sub) Man of the Match: Jonas Thern Falkirk Follower
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