Rangers manager Pedro Caixinha has lambasted his players following the Light Blues’ Betfred Cup defeat against Motherwell at Hampden Park on Sunday.
Caixinha insisted that the players have ‘embarrassed him, the club and the fans’ as they succumbed to a 2-0 loss. When asked if the players had the right character to wear Rangers’ iconic blue shirts, Caixinha said: “It doesn’t look like that.
“I told the players, ‘You’re embarrassing me, you embarrass the club, you embarrass our fans and now it’s time for you to react’ and I’m glad that we are playing on Wednesday.”
Rangers will face Kilmarnock at Ibrox on Wednesday in what is believed to be a must win game for Caixinha. The Portuguese coach added that he wants to pick the same XI that lost to Motherwell.
“If I can pick the same 11, if all of them were available, those guys who didn’t do the work that they needed to do yesterday, those are the ones that are going to start the match,” he said.
“I cannot count on Jak Alnwick for Wednesday because he felt a contusion on his arm.
“You have seen Fabio’s (Cardoso) face (he suffered broken nose after seemingly being elbowed by Ryan Bowman), so I cannot count on him.
“That’s why I’m giving them a second chance. If I could play with the same 11 then go and show me what you need to do. I’m the responsible one but as I told you, there are things I am responsible to change.
“There are other things I cannot change. If I cannot change it the natural way then let’s change it the confrontational way, on the way that they need to prove it because I know that they are not feeling good at this moment.
“I know that they have this feeling of guilt. That they should have done things differently, that they should have done much more.
“I’m a guy who doesn’t like to lose. I go home and I don’t sleep but I have my mind clear. I want them to have their mind clear.”
Rangers are third on the Scottish Premiership table, six points behind leaders Celtic.
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