After just two games of the season, Rangers are already four points behind title rivals Celtic and Kris Boyd believes “it should be a worry” for Russell Martin.
James Tavernier’s stoppage-time penalty earned them a 1-1 draw with Dundee on Saturday, in a very different performance to their emphatic 3-0 Champions League qualifying win against Viktoria Plzen.
Russell Martin stuck with the same starting XI as midweek after he made big changes as he questioned egos and mentality in their draw with Motherwell.
Highlights from the Scottish Premiership match between Rangers and Dundee
Six of Rangers’ nine summer signings started against Plzen and Dundee with Boyd questioning the quality they have added to the squad.
“I know Djeidi Gassama has come in on the left, it’s very difficult to judge him against anything from last season because Ianis Hagi played out there a few times, there was Hamza Igamane and sometimes [Cyriel] Dessers last season,” he told Sky Sports.
“Oliver Antman’s just in the door so it’s very difficult to compare him to [Vaclav] Cerny, but Cerny’s numbers last year were through the roof in terms of goal contributions.
“Other than that, I don’t really see Rangers have an upgrade in any position.
Djeidi Gassama and Oliver Antman have joined Rangers this summer
“Nasser Djiga’s come in and he’s done well, but he’s on loan.
“Leon Balogun made defensive tackles, he made clearances, and I know he was injured quite a bit at the end there, but I don’t look at Djiga and think, you’re a massive upgrade from what Balogun was.
“Max Aarons is definitely not an upgrade on James Tavernier.
Nicolas Raskin and James Tavernier have started Rangers’ last two games on the bench
“Joe Rothwell’s come into the middle of the pitch, and I know it’s a different style of play that Rangers want to play right now, but I don’t see him as an upgrade as it stands right now on Nico Raskin.
“Lyall Cameron is a tidy enough little player, but Rangers have got a lot of work to do.”
‘It’s a worry for Martin’
Rangers head coach Russell Martin wants his side to be more aggressive with the ball after they drew at Ibrox with Dundee
The draw against Dundee was the first time since 1989 that the Ibrox side had not won either of their first two league games.
Martin took the blame for his decision to field an unchanged starting XI as they showed little of the energy and desire they did against Viktoria Plzen.
“It would be a worry that you go from the highs of Tuesday night, and we’ve seen it with Rangers again in Europe,” Boyd added.
“I don’t think the result against Panathinaikos was very good, but there were glimpses in that performance where you would say, OK, there’s something maybe starting to happen here.
Rangers struggled against Dundee
“But there were also phases of play that would worry you. Last Saturday [against Motherwell] and against Dundee, you look at managers that have come in previously, at the start of their regime, they’ve been able to get a reaction out of the players, domestically.
“The worry for Russell Martin so early in the season would be that in Europe, they’ve managed to find performances again, but again against teams where you expect them to win, it’s not happening.”
Sky Sports to show 215 live PL games from this season
From this season, Sky Sports’ Premier League coverage will increase from 128 matches to at least 215 games exclusively live.
And 80 per cent of all televised Premier League games next season are on Sky Sports
