Conor Barron, who is making his first appearance back at Pittodrie since leaving this summer, has stated his belief that Rangers have the talent necessary to contend with Celtic for the Scottish championship this season.
After they lost 1-0 to Kilmarnock at Rugby Park last Sunday and were still six points behind leaders Celtic and Aberdeen in the William Hill Premiership league, Barron and his teammates were jeered off the field by their irate fans.
They put that awful disappointment behind them on Thursday night when they defeated Romanian champions FCSB 4-0 in Govan to increase their prospects of making it to the Europa League knockout stages. They responded to that setback in spectacular way. The midfielder accepted that the Glasgow team must continue to play at the same level as they did in midweek as he got ready for this afternoon’s league matchup against St Mirren at home. He also conceded that the performance in Ayrshire last weekend had been disappointing.
“It was good to win on Thursday night,” said Barron. “We obviously had a reaction after the weekend. We came out of the traps fast, we didn’t stop our standards, we were always high during the game. That’s something that should be a given to wear the shirt. From now on, that needs to be the way we play every single week.
“We left everything out on the pitch on Thursday night. It was a real team performance. In our attacking situations, we really controlled the game and we obviously got the four goals. But we got the clean sheet as well. We came away happy.
“Obviously, it was good on the back of the last European game too. We lost against Lyon and we weren’t happy. We’re never happy losing. We need to be winning games at this football club. We all know that.
Thursday was a good reaction all round. But we shouldn’t need that reaction. That should be what we are producing every week. That’s the standard of wearing the Rangers shirt. That’s got to continue. It can’t stop.”
The 22-year-old has established himself as a regular in Philippe Clement’s side since arriving back in June, impressed fans with his energy and work rate and won himself two call ups to the Scotland squad.
He stressed that he has not experienced any difficulties adapting to the intense demands of Rangers supporters and insisted the adverse reactions to the Hearts, Dynamo Kyiv, Celtic, Lyon and Kilmarnock results have not affected him.
“I’m really enjoying it,” he said. “I think you can see I’m going out there with a smile on my face and embracing it. It’s brilliant for me. I’m really enjoying it.
“I’m focused on my football. I’m focused on my day-to-day job. Coming in, making myself a better player, making the team better, ultimately going out there and putting on performances for team performances and winning games of football. That’s all it is.
I definitely think I have come on. But you can say that about any player that makes the move. I’m thriving off the staff and the players around me. Playing on nights like Thursday is always good.
“It’s constantly learning on the job and making sure I’m making myself better and the team better. I’ve always been like that. Growing up, I’ve always liked to be a leader on the pitch. I feel within myself that I read the game quite well. That won’t stop.
“I’m not focused on anything else. I don’t see it (the criticism). We’re a team inside there. We know what we need to do. I think we showed the right reaction on Thursday night. As I said before, we can’t stop. This needs to be what we do every week.”
Barron continued: “The noise outside will be the noise. That’s nothing we can affect. We need to make sure we do our jobs. That’s getting three points or getting a win whenever we play.
“The fans are massive. They’ve always been behind us. They’ve always showed their support. When they’re unhappy, it’s quite rightly so. We didn’t perform at the weekend, they were unhappy. That’s the way it is. That’s the way football is.
“But they were right behind us on Thursday night. You could see that. We just need to keep repaying them. Doing our job is making them go home happy every week. That’s what we need to do.”
Clement brought in no fewer than nine new players, including Nedim Bajrami, Barron, Vaclav Cerny, Hamza Igamane, Jefte, Robin Propper and Neraysho Kasanwirjo, this summer and Clement has repeatedly stressed his new-look side is a work in progress.
Barron, who is sure to be targeted by the home supporters during the Premiership match against his old club Aberdeen on Wednesday night, is certain Rangers have the quality they need to be crowned champions.
“Really convinced,” he said ahead a difficult run of games against St Mirren at home and Aberdeen, Motherwell and Olympiacos away. “We need to show more of what we did on Thursday night when we’re playing. It’s a collective effort. We need to win and keep winning. They’re all big games.
“Nico [Raskin] came in and played alongside me on Thursday night. That shows that there’s quality in the team. We knew that. I think it was only the second time we’ve played in a game with Nico.
“But whoever’s on the pitch, we gel. It’s about us as a team. It’s not about individual partnerships and stuff like that. Nico came in on Thursday night and I thought he was brilliant.
After Sunday, I believe we owed everyone a performance. It was simply insufficient. That was something we owed to ourselves, but we also owed the club, the supporters, and everyone else. We did it on Thursday evening. But that game isn’t the only one. We must go on. A victory is a victory. You go once more; it’s finished. We proceed and turn our attention to St. Mirren next.
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