Connor Goldson doubles down on Rangers comment and makes standards admission
Today at 03:40 AM
Now that he has been away from the club for a few months, Connor Goldson has been telling a few Rangers truths.
Goldson brought to an end his six years at Ibrox when he swapped it for Cypriot side Aris Limassol in the summer.
The Englishman had been a hugely dependable centre-back and vice-captain for much of his time at Gers but it was seen by many as a good time to part ways.
He was a massive part of title number 55 in 2020/21, breaking defensive records, and also won a Scottish Cup and a League Cup during his time in Glasgow.
Things for the club didn’t quite progress the right way off the back of that though and Goldson was one of the players allowed to leave as part of Philippe Clement’s rebuild.
Goldson reflects on Rangers ‘not hungry’ comments
It was when commenting on the lack of a reaction to winning the league that Goldson previously got very honest.
It’s generally been agreed upon since that Rangers and the board failed to properly build on that and didn’t help manager Steven Gerrard deliver on his ‘fix the roof when the sun is shining’ vow.
It’s potentially a factor in Gerrard leaving for Aston Villa and allowed Celtic to reclaim the title the following season, from where they have gone on to dominate.
That season, Rangers were beaten 3-1 in a Premier Sports Cup semi-final by Hibs and afterwards Goldson admitted the team weren’t showing the same hunger.
He was criticised for that, which he has now reflected on.
"I always remember doing an interview after we lost to Hibs in the League Cup semi-final when Steven left,” the 31-year-old told the Daily Record.
"I got absolutely hammered for it at the time. But that was me saying that we had come back and weren't as hungry as we were the year before when we knew everything was on the line.
"I could feel it in the pre-season. The running we'd done the year before … suddenly people didn't want to do that anymore. I felt after that semi-final was the right time to say it and maybe it didn't come across well. But when I was at the club, I felt I was the person who had to say things like that.
"I took the stick for it but do I regret it? No, I don't. We didn't look as hungry or as fit as we'd been the year we won the league.
"Celtic lost a lot of key players that summer and – it was fortunate for them – but no-one thought that Ange would do what he did there The whole football club took its eye off the ball when Celtic lost a lot of players and their manager.
"Unfortunately for us, they quickly turned it around. I was frustrated at that time because I could see what was going on. I could see what was happening.
"Even during the season, when we'd dropped points and the title race was still close – I felt I had to say something to get a reaction. It didn't go down well but if you look at how things have panned out, I think that I was right. When Steven left, standards got lower."
Goldson defends Rangers pal Tavernier
Goldson has also offered a staunch defence of James Tavernier, after the pair copped much of the flak together last year and the captain has continued to get it.
Tav has been absolutely amazing for Rangers," he said. “He plays every game and you don't realise how hard that is to replace.
"When you do that, you'll take the most criticism – because you're the player who will have the most bad games.
"If you play 60 games and have five bad ones, these five will be remembered. If you play 10 games and have one bad one, people think you're amazing.
"When you play every week, you're more prone to make mistakes. Everyone is human. Has Tav had bad games? Of course he has. But he's always there, available for every single game – even now.
"That's a massive credit to him. What he's done for that club is incredible."
