Danny Rohl drops team selection hint as Rangers boss places 'pressure' tag on Hearts

Rohl is looking for a response from his players after the 1-1 draw with 10-man Motherwell in midweek left them five points behind Hearts, and has been discussing his much-criticised team selection from that game ahead of Hearts’ visit on Sunday.

The 36-year-old opted to leave new signings Andreas Skov-Olsen, Ryan Naderi, and Tuur Rommens on the bench at Fir Park, leaving a section of the Rangers support frustrated after they lost ground in the title race when Nico Raskin’s early opener was cancelled by Stephen Welsh in the 88th minute.

“It's all about a must-win,” said Rohl. “We want to win, we know what that means. We have a big opportunity to close the gap from 13 points to two points, and it's a great opportunity. Generally it's about consistency, to take consistency three points in a row, again and again and again, and I think in the last couple of weeks we did really well at this.

“We took a lot of points, that's the reason why we closed the gap. I think it's also a big game to take the three points, but I think it's also for Hearts. If you are 13 points ahead of a club and you drop maybe to two points, maybe there's also pressure on them. I think this is for both teams, both teams know what's about in this game.

“Every game now is crucial, and all the teams now know every result influences a lot, but every result is also not a final. Hearts are a tough opponent, I think there's a reason why they are top of the league since matchday three. They find always a way to win games, but we found also a way to come back

“As a manager you take responsibility. There were some reasons [for his team selection against Motherwell], I can't tell you today about injuries. I think we have a good run at home, a lot of good results, a lot of clean sheets. But we face a strong side, but we have a different challenge to Wednesday [vs Motherwell]. We have also to understand this game, and I want to pick the best team for this game.”

Youssef Chermiti also came in for criticism in midweek after he missed a glorious chance to put Rangers 2-0 up, with many fans failing to understand why Rohl had opted to start with the Portuguese striker ahead of Naderi, who put in a man-of-the-match performance on his debut against Queen’s Park last week.

“It's tough for him,” said Rohl. “It isn’t about the reaction, it's more about how he feels. He knows exactly he wants to score. Even in this game, for me, he wants a lot for this group. He comes in a good situation. I want him to take an extra touch and then look for the corner and he scores it. But it will come. I totally believe, because I see a lot of things in him.

“It's the small moments. It's about hard-working again, trying your best, coming again in situations, and then we celebrate him. He turned the Celtic game with two fantastic goals, and he can do this again, I believe.”

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