Derek McInnes was delighted that his Rangers team got the job done against Aberdeen to book their place in the Premier Sports Cup final, but he wasn’t getting carried away.
After dominating possession, registering 25 shots and only five on target, he said: “It’s not good enough.”
That’s refreshing.
Rangers 1 Aberdeen 0 wasn’t a convincing scoreline, and it wasn’t a strong performance either. It was too disjointed and ponderous at times, as the manager alluded to.
Rangers increased the tempo in the second half, but as much as they unleashed several attacks, the final ball or finish was missing and the back door was left open.
This encouraged Aberdeen, who had their moments without punishing the Gers.
McInnes’ team is a work in progress, but that is now nine wins and two draws since Jablonec. That’s more than acceptable.
McInnes speaks post-match
In the post-match press conference at Hampden, Derek McInnes detailed his pleasure at qualifying for the final, tempered with his reflections on another contrasting performance.
“Yeah, well, we came with the intention and arrived here today to make sure we got the club into a cup final by hook or by crook, and we’ve done the job.
“So really pleased and delighted with the players, in the main, for their perseverance, for keeping going.
“You know, I’ve been involved with lots of clubs. I’ve been involved with Rangers where, in semi-finals, we had far bigger, more talented squads. We struggled to get through semi-finals. Semi-finals aren’t easy to get through, and particularly when you play the way we did in the first half.
“We were ponderous when we needed to be quicker. When we needed to be calm in the final bit, we snatched and made poor decisions. You have 75% possession, 25 shots. It’s not good enough if you only have five on target. That needs to be said.
“But that’s for another day. Today was just all about getting through to the final.
“It’s so important for this group of players to feel that. It’s so important for the club and the supporters to look forward to a cup final.
“This is where we need to keep arriving. Keep arriving at Hampden, we need to keep arriving in cup finals and get the job done to win trophies. That’s the job.”
That’s it in a nutshell.
There will be further bumps on the road this season, but it would have a massive blow to lose this tie to Aberdeen.
Rangers ensured the job was done and can now look forward to facing Hearts or Hibs in the Premier Sports Cup final on December 13.
St. Johnstone away, originally scheduled for that date, will now be rearranged.
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