'That's not a Rangers team': Fuming Barry Ferguson fillets players and vows to wield axe on error-ridden stars

In what was the Gers’ fifth consecutive home defeat in all competitions, Ferguson said that the performance was not befitting of Rangers and promised personnel changes for Thursday’s Europa League quarter-final against Athletic Bilbao, hinting that goalkeeper Jack Butland may lose his place to deputy Liam Kelly after another individual error from the England internationalist handed Hibs the initiative.

Butland let a long-range strike from Dylan Levitt squirm through his grasp on eight minutes for the opener and Hibs settled the contest with 20 minutes to go when Martin Boyle scored on the break. Rangers’ No 9 Cyriel Dessers missed three good chances and the hosts were toothless in attack, with the majority of the home fans leaving well before the end.

Ferguson said that he had left the players in no doubt of how poor the display was and vowed to make sweeping alterations to his team when the LaLiga outfit visit for the first leg of the European tie on Thursday night.

“Worse than disappointing,” said Ferguson. “God, where do I start? How long have we got? Spent a bit of time in the dressing room. A few home truths were told. Hibs deserved to win. That's me just being straight.

“That's not a Rangers team. Miles from being a Rangers team. This is your bread and butter. And I've said it, I feel I'm repeating myself. European games, Celtic games are the easiest games to get up for. These are the games that this group of players struggle with and it was evident today.

Rangers boss ‘doesn’t get it’

“Yet we started good. Again, another mistake. Go into your shells, feel sorry for each other. Come back out after ten minutes. Finish okay. Second half, I demand a lot more from them. And I don't get it.

“You're playing with Glasgow Rangers. You can't get up for games of football then ... you shouldn't be playing football. Especially here, you come into a place like this. Brilliant stadium and supporters. Packed to the rafters. Getting behind you. And we put on a performance like that. As you can probably see or hear, I'm fuming.

Asked if he fears some of these players aren't mentally strong enough to play for Rangers, Ferguson continued: “I would rather keep that in-house if I'm being honest with you. But I seriously need to go away myself.. and I'm not just putting that on my players. I'm the guy who picks the team. I'm the guy who decides how we're going to approach the game. So I need to go away tonight…

“I've made my mind up what way we have to go from now until the end of the season. And it might not be pretty to watch. And that, as a Rangers fan, coming to Ibrox, you want to see free-flowing, attractive football. I don't think we can do that. So I need to go away and think long and hard about what way we're going to approach with my staff. But I've got a real good idea what way I'm going to go now for the end of the season. And it's not going to change.

“There'll be a series of changes on Thursday night. And I can say that right now.”

When probed if that would include Butland, Ferguson answered: “No, listen. I get where you're coming from with Jack. Listen, as I said, when I come up here, I'm open and honest. And I've said to Jack, it's a bad mistake. He understands that. So I then need to go and we'll see an hour and a half. Is it 90 minutes? An hour and 15 minutes when you get the team lines. You will see some changes. That's why you carry a squad.

“If people make mistakes, people are off it, people don't run as much as I think they should run, then they're not going to play in my team. Because I watched that Hibs team who I thought wanted it more than us. And it hurts me to say that, but it is what it is. So it's my job now to go in and try and come up with a scenario. And I tell you something, I'll work hard at doing it. And I'll make sure I do it.”