The Game Is a Bogie

All joking aside now let's stop this nonesense, the game is a bogie, the manager is cheating. How can this guy justify replacing Ranger's best player with his own man, only to see him throw the game?

Rangers are now ten points behind Champions Celtic and it is hard to see any way back. Second place is looking like it might be a bridge too far. The team was dreadful and the manager, well the jury is back in and he is guilty. If this was the Wild West a posse would be hunting him down and when he was found he would be hung from the nearest tree. Le Guin must be happy he lives in more sophisticated times.

Well want had changed since Aberdeen? Not a lot really when you consider the opposition, Letizi and Sebo in for McGregor and Sionko. Shouldn't have mattered but it did. McGregor was the only reason Rangers are still in Europe and, before today, in touch at the top.

The game was a dead bore until Letizi saved from Dargo after thirty minues. Yup thirty minues and Rangers had created nothing. Maybe that woke the Rangers up because five minutes later the Manchester United player, Bardsley, had a shot at Caley's goal. Yawn!!!!!!

The usually reliable Buffel had another shot saved after 42 minutes and that was it for the first half. What a bore, what a joke.

The second half continued in the same vain and it wasn't until 58 minutes when again it was Buffel with the shot that produced a fine save from the Caley goalkeeper. Buffel again was unlucky when his brilliant volley flew just over.

Buffel, again, was in the thick of it, his flick to Adam looked like it had gievn Rangers a penalty, but the referee was having none of it.

Boyd came on for Prso who had given a poor show today. Boyd was not must better missing from a Sebo rebound.

Then it happened, Caley scored when Letizi failed to hold onto Dargo's shot, Baynes stuck the rebound home. 1-0 to Caley Thistle.

The fans seemed upset and booed and jeered Letizi. But the guy was only doing his job, it was the manager who made the decision to play him and it is he who should be booed.

Novo came on as a sub and was close after 78 minutes and also crossed to Boyd who missed again. It was Novo again in the last minute with a close effort, but the game finished and Rangers had been beaten by Caley Thistle for the first time at Ibrox.

Le Guen thinks he is going to have a hard job turning things around a Ibrox this season. Insightful? Non? It's his team and he built it, trained it and picked it. Rubbish. He is a very luck man, last year McLiesh got hounded out of his job, and even Strachan at Celtic got a harder time than this guy.

It is time for the Chairman to live up to his billing and make some difficult decisions.

To paraphase the Ibrox Faithful, Boo!!!!

Vive la Revolution

Well with no SPL football it is time to reflect upon Le Guen's performance. No one expected Rangers to get such a high profile figure from world football, but they did. The question now is, was it worth it.

So far you have to say that his school report card would read 'could do better'. Many people are now wondering if he can build a team from scratch or is the sort of manager who can only build upon other peoples success. He led Lyon to three titles in a row, but the team he took over had already proven itself and as not of his own design. The man who took over from him has continued with that success, so he hasn't been missed. That has to be food for thought.

Already this season Rangers are seven points behind Celtic and four behind Hearts, after only nine games. Maybe this season will revolve around the UEFA cup, but the draw was not exactly favourable.

Rangers had felt that the previous manager was not going to lead them into a new ea of European success and chose to take a man how had spent the last year as a TV pundit and running marathons in the desert.

The announcment of Le Guen was met with universal media praise and fans euphoria. This was the man to take Rangers forward. Now the fans waited to see a production line of French talent coming through, ala Arsenal. Well the season has started and there are no French startlets and the team seems no better off than last year.

Le Guen signed twelve players during the summer, but only one of them was deemed good enough to play against Celtic in the 2-0 defeat at Celtic Park. This is hardly showing Le Guen as a good judge of up and coming talent. In fact the best players in the team are those he inherited from the previous manager.

Having said this his start at Lyon was equally poor, only three wins in nine matches. But does he have the backing of the board to pull Rangers out of their current hole? Only time will tell.

Wins in the SPL against Aberdeen and UEFA aginst Molde have given him some breathing space, but for how long? Rangers fans will need more than this to satify their desire for success. They want to win the SPL title back from Celtic, but Le Guen does not seem to want to discuss this. After the Abredeen game he said, 'I don't want to speak about that. I want to speak about the victory and the way we played.'

Maybe the extra training sessions and the more disciplined apporach will eventually pay dividends at Ibrox, but will Le Guen be given enough time? If not then the fans will reject the revolution for something a bit more immediate.

Maybe Rangers should look at the national team for inspiration. Scotland chose a European manager to take them to the next level with a new brand of football. After years of indifferent results they hanged to a traditional Scottish manager and the success followed.

Buffy does it again

Only one change from Thursday's game with Sasa Papac replacing Kris Boyd which meant the 'Buffy' Buffel started again.

With Rangers in full control of the game the 'Dandy Don' Smith gets a handful of the brilliant Buffel and what happens nothing. I don't know what the ref is looking at when Buffel is on the ball but it's not the game, more likely his muscular physique.

The Dandies had free kick and from it a header that hit the bar, so the Gers had to be on their toes. No lying back and letting the Dons big boys make hay with the ball.

Buffel's brilliant skill, movement and running was amazing. I could watch him dance to dip all day. He had a cross that let Sionko and Ferguson both have a shot at goal.

Aberdeen had some of the ball but it was still all Rangers and it was that man again Buffel. He broke through and then with a twist and a turn he chipped for goal, only to see the keeper block the certain goal.

More attacking for Rangers and a penalty denied in the run up to half-time but still the deadlock could not be broken.

Again the man of the moment Buffel was at the heart of everything.

His corner found Sionko who fired over. Then his lay-off found Adam who shot wide. The man is amazing and you can see that the other Rangers players are wide-eyed with awe when he is on the park.

Rangers nearly got the breakthough that Buffel so richly deserved when Richard Foster sliced a clearance just over his own crossbar with that man Buffel giving him a hard time.

The game settled down with both teams have chances but neither team could score.

But the goal came and it was from a Buffel shot that broke to Sebo who shot into the net.

Once again Buffel was the daddy. You can see in the eyes of his team mates that when Buffel is probing away they are kept on their toes.

Aberdeen Game Preview

Well Buffel took us through on Thursday against crack Norwegian team Molde. We are still in the UEFA Cup and it is all thanks to the Buffel man.

So what can we expect from the Dandy Dons on Sunday? More of the same if you ask me. With Buffel on from the start the game is in the bag. He keeps banging away from the front and from behind and you can see that the other Rangers players want it that way. I am so excited about this match as it should cement Buffels place in the team.

Away from the game Rangers fans will continue to be watched to see if they still sings those songs that nobody wants to hear. I can't believe that people sing those odious songs anymore. I certainly don't so why would other Rangers fans sing them. The press need to get another bee under their bonnet.

Back to the match I see it as 1-0 to the Rangers with Buffel on target again with some great stroke play.

Buffel Buffel Buffel

At long last the manager started a game with Buffel on the pitch. This game was too important and Buffel was bent on getting behind the Rangers team. This victory means that Rangers get into the group stages of the UEFA Cup.

The man of the match was officially Allan McGregor but my man of the match was Mr Buffel. Fair enough the keeper had to make four point-blank saves but Buffel was brilliant, just brilliant. In fact he was the boy to give Rangers joy with some great ball play and he stroked home an early goal to release some Rangers player's pressure.

Rangers central defenders are still getting to know each other, with Julien Rodriguez and Brahim Hemdani looking like they need someone to take them in hand, maybe Mr Buffel.

The Buffel goal came from some goal ball play between Dado Prso 's and Steven Smith. They got the ball to Buffel whose brilliant touch slipped the ball in at the near post.

Molde then toook control and hd some great chances, somehow an unmarked Baldvinsson managed to head wide from six yards and McGregor had a finger-tip save from a Magne Hoseth header.

But not to worry as Mr Buffel was on his game. Libor Sionko controlled a pass from young Smith and he passed to Kris Boyd who backheeled the ball to Ferguson, who shot into the net.

Molde still kept coming but when Hoseth outpaced Hemdani McGregor came to Rangers' rescue. He then had another great save from Baldvinsson as Buffel was controlling the game in the middle of the park.

At the final whistle you could see the relief on the faces of the Rangers players. Glad to see Buffel still on the park and off they trotted with a smile on their face for a well deserved bath together.

Just like the old days

LeGuin once again left the brilliant Buffel out of the side against a Celtic team who could open up a seven-point lead over Rangers with a victory and that is exactly what they did. If the manager continues to lave out the best players then the gap will be too large for Rangers.

What about the game then? Thomas Gravesen put Celtic ahead and it unbelievably a former Rangers player, Kenny Miller, scored his first goal as he added the second, against the run of play, that basically killed then game.

The games was all Rangers at the start, but Celtic looked more of a goal threat. Their new boy Lee Naylor sent a in long ball that found Miller. Miller can run faster that anyone else and he ran faster than Sasa Papac but Allan McGregor put him off and his lob was just off target. Then the Japanese player Shunsuke Nakamura had a right hard shot that must have stung McGregor's hands.

Then Rangers took a quick free-kick, it was from Charlie Adam, and Artur Boruc was nearly caught out, brilliant stuff from Rangers. Again Ranger handle anything that Celtic throw at them and McGregor made a brilliant save to stop Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink's shot from going in.

Alan Hutton was the best player on the park but he gave away possession and eventually it fell to Neil Lennon who had time to get a cross in.

Celtic were still not doing much and Aiden McGeady should have scored with an easy header but the brilliant McGregor saved it from point-blank range. The trouble was that Tommy Gravesen was there to head into a empty net. That was the only way they were going to score.

The very lucky McGeady hit the top of the bar with a miss hit shot and then Celtic came close again at the start of the second half with a Nakamura shot.

Rangers really started to control the game now and Dado Prso's played a brilliant pass to find Barry Ferguson but he couldn't get to the ball before Boruc ran to clear it. Then Adam had a brilliant ball to the back post that had Boruc all over the place as Rangers piled on the pressure. Celtic could only hit back on the break and McGeady's lucky pass released Miller scuffed a shot passed McGregor.

But Rangers continued the better team with Prso's header cleared off the line by Naylor and Kris Boyd's shot crashed against the bar.

Even at 2-0 down the manager still did not think to bring on the best Rangers player, the brilliant Buffel. I blame this for the defeat, the players tried their best but they need Buffel's special touch to bring them to life.