Patience is a virtue.
It might have been nervous and it might have taken a while, but Rangers got absolutely what they deserved in the 3-1 win against Motherwell at Ibrox despite looking for long periods like they were banging their heads against an amber and maroon brick wall.
Steven Robinson claimed in his post match interview that the Steelmen had set up in a 3-5-2 formation, now, I was never great at maths but at no point did I see two players remotely close to looking like the were playing in positions traditionally occupied by strikers and it was, in reality, a 5-5-0.
There are low blocks and there are low blocks, when a team lines up for kick off then runs back the way rather than pressing the opposition, you know what the game plan is going to be and it isn’t free flowing attacking football.
Facing that sort of set-up is never conducive to an entertaining game and the team with possession has a few options when trying to find a breakthrough, conceding an early goal is not, however, part of the plan.
Playing the numbers game is one tactic that can work, firing in cross after cross into the box hoping for a deflection or a ricochet, shooting from long range or playing intricate passes and 1-2s between the lines is another, but basically it’s just about perseverance – you have to find a way, anyway, to break it down.
Be honest, did you think Rangers were dropping points?
Yes
No
Expecting anything other than a slog against those tactics is naive and the relevance of how the job is done should be forgotten as soon as the final whistle is blown, after all, if it was easy to beat a low block, teams wouldn’t set up in that formation.
Another box ticked and another three points collected makes it 50 out of 54 for the first 18 games, keep calm, trust the team, and be patient – good things come to those who wait.