Derek McInnes is determined to make Rangers a happy place again, but he knows that happiness can only arrive with winning. The former Aberdeen, Kilmarnock and Hearts boss has returned to Ibrox as manager, and he has been struck by how little fun the current squad appears to be having.
McInnes remembers the joy of his own time as a Rangers player, when Walter Smith's side collected trophies and the atmosphere around the club was celebratory. Now, after recent seasons without silverware, he sees a group weighed down by criticism.
“A lot of players have not really enjoyed it as much as they could have and it's not a place to be enjoyed if you're not winning,” McInnes said.
Players must feel uncomfortable
The new manager is not asking his players to settle for misery. Instead, he wants them to channel that discomfort into improvement. “You shouldn't be comfortable at Rangers if you're not winning and I don't want us to feel comfortable if we're not. We've got to feel uncomfortable if we're not winning,” he said.
“This can be so much better and enjoyable. But it’s hard for players when they feel they're constantly getting pointed at, constantly getting criticised for not doing enough.”
McInnes wants to remind his squad what the club can offer. “It's important for me to try and make the players realise that this club can bring you so much enjoyment and so much reward. It can be a brilliant experience for you. Yes, there is a lot of suffering at times and a lot of soul searching. It's just trying to change that whole feeling for the players.”
“There's no worse feeling than somebody thinking you're underachieving and not doing enough. That's a horrible place to be. Normally you get a job because something's not quite right, you get something because something's broken somewhere and you go in and you've got to just try and implement what you want, how you want to work.”
He also wants the players to learn from last season. “You have to try and galvanise the team and I do feel on the back of last season that although it's a fresh start, we've still got to remind them that we don't want to have the same feelings that they went through last season as a group of players.”
No guaranteed success at Ibrox
McInnes is ready for the hard work required, and he has warned his squad that reputation alone will not be enough. “The club can be so brilliant for a player and as a manager because it can bring us so much,” he said. “But we have to be the ones to drive it.”
“Just because you wear the badge and play for a club like Rangers, it does not guarantee you anything. You have to guarantee the togetherness, the work rate, being good enough to win games of football week in, week out — and not just being reliant on the strength of the club, the size of the club and the fact you have 50,000 getting behind you.”
“No-one is going to give us a title or trophies. We have to work for it. I do feel that coming to Rangers as a player, you are in the building because you are a good player. There is no one here who is not a good player. But to be the best version of themselves, they have to understand that there is work to do.”
“It doesn’t come automatically. They’re quite a young group, they have to work at their job. This is what they have chosen to do and this is what they are good at. It is important that they try and be the best they can be.”
McInnes knows it is easier to talk than to deliver. “I’m conscious I do not want to regurgitate a lot of what has been said before. It is easy to say something, it is harder to implement it and do it. I do not want to just say what people want me to say. I know what needs to be done. I am determined to do that.”
“I do not want to let anyone down. I want to make sure the responsibility is mine and others within the club but the players and myself have to make sure we give ourselves the chance to be successful. I am well aware of that responsibility.”
“There is work to do but we will do it. I intend to do it well. I want to enjoy being the Rangers manager. I want my players to enjoy playing for Rangers. We can only enjoy it if we are winning.”
First official match at Tannadice
McInnes will take charge of his first official game as Rangers manager tonight at Tannadice as the new Premiership season begins. The match is being shown live on Sky, with the home crowd expected to be full and vociferous.
“The game’s live on Sky and the first game of the Premiership season there is so much focus on it. The ingredients are all there,” he said. “It will be a full house. The Rangers fans will turn up full of expectation and in full voice, like normal. I want to tap into that positively and play the game a certain way. We need to give them the team they expect.”
He accepts that perfection is unlikely at this stage. “While we are not going to be perfect at this stage of the season, I don’t think any team will. We just need to make sure we are good enough to win the game and the last four and a bit weeks of preparation will hopefully help us.”
