STEVEN GERRARD insists his Rangers side should be setting their own high standards this season and not just trying to match his at Ibrox.
The Light Blues earned their fourth win in five matches under Gerrard’s watch with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Wigan on Sunday.
Second half goals from Alfredo Morelos, Nikola Katic and Umar Sadiq were enough to see off the Latics.
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But Gerrard was frustrated with a low-key performance from his side during the 45 minutes against the Championship outfit.
He said: “The second half was very good, I thought we were very aggressive.
“The second half was very close to where and how I want it to look.
“I think you saw two sides of us today. You saw a team in the first half that waited for the game and waited to work the opposition out.
“We were second-best, disjointed, not organised, and in the second half you saw a different Rangers team.
“It was a Rangers team that owned the stadium, owned the pitch, was aggressive and on the front foot, got tight to people and passed the ball well.
“We basically blew Wigan away in 15-20 minutes, but the message is that you can’t wait for half-time to do that. I said that to the players at half-time.
“It shouldn’t be my high standards, it should be their high standards. They are professional footballers and they are playing for Rangers.
“They are walking about with the Rangers badge on their chest every day. It should be their standards and the club’s standards, not mine.
“My standards are high, but it’s not about me, it’s about them, and they have got to bring high standards here. It’s simple.
“Every time I watch them train and play they give me food for thought, not just in this game in particular.
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“Obviously the amount of changes and subs today was a reflection on having big games on the horizon, first and foremost on Thursday where we need to try to get qualification. So, yes, food for thought, definitely.”
The goals from Morelos, Katic and Sadiq were the highlights of a solid showing from Rangers ahead of their crunch clashes with Osijek and Aberdeen this week.
Keepers Jak Alnwick and Wes Foderingham both got 45 minutes as the Gers earned their fifth successive clean sheet.
And Gerrard reckons summer signing Allan McGregor has helped raise the bar between this sticks so far this season.
He said: “Allan has been fantastic. He is like having a captain and a leader in there. He knows what this club is all about.
“Allan doesn’t really need a manager - he manages himself.
“He makes sure his standards are top every day and I have been absolutely delighted with him.
“The two lads are fighting it out and pushing him. I don’t really like naming my goalkeepers one, two and three. I just like having three keepers around me that I trust.
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“I trust the three lads - but unfortunately it’s impossible to keep three keepers happy.
“We are really happy with our defensive shape and organisation and the lads are protecting the goal very well. That’s the base we are looking for.
“I had a good idea with the signings and changes we made we could make an improvement of course.
“But it’s still going to take time - we are not the finished team or squad by any means.
“Connor (Goldson) and Nikola have been absolutely top drawer. The triangle with Allan has been perfect so far.”
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