McINNES OFF THE MARK: EXPERIMENTAL RANGERS SIDE THRASH RAITH ROVERS AS NEW PRE-SEASON PLAN TAKES SHAPE!
Derek McInnes has begun his tenure as Rangers manager in encouraging fashion, with an experimental Ibrox side putting on a commanding attacking display to thrash Scottish Championship outfit Raith Rovers 5-1 in a behind-closed-doors friendly fixture staged at the club’s Auchenhowie training centre on Saturday. The convincing victory represents an early positive marker for the new Rangers boss as he continues stepping up his preparations for the forthcoming campaign, with the closed-door nature of the fixture allowing McInnes his first proper opportunity to assess his developing squad in a genuinely competitive match environment, away from the usual scrutiny of public attention.
With Rangers having invited their Championship counterparts to the club’s training facility specifically for this bounce game, the fixture offered a valuable early glimpse into how various fringe players, alongside several of the club’s summer signings, are beginning to settle into life under their new manager as pre-season preparations continue to intensify.
According to reports from the Rangers Review, Saturday’s fixture developed into a genuinely high-scoring affair, with McInnes’s experimental side finding the net on no fewer than five separate occasions before Raith Rovers eventually grabbed something of a late consolation goal from the penalty spot. The comprehensive nature of the win, even accounting for the informal and closed-door circumstances of the fixture, will offer plenty of early encouragement to a Rangers support eager for signs of genuine progress under their new manager following what proved to be a disappointing campaign last time out.
Among those getting themselves on the scoresheet during this convincing victory were Lyall Cameron, Tuur Rommens, Nedim Bajrami, Ryan Naderi, and summer signing Ross McCrorie, with all five players finding the net at various stages throughout the contest. Having such a broad spread of goalscorers across the team underlines the attacking depth and variety currently available to McInnes, even with several key first-team players still unavailable for selection, and offers early evidence of a squad capable of consistently creating and converting chances across multiple areas of the pitch.
For McCrorie specifically, getting on the scoresheet during his first appearance under the new manager’s guidance will represent a particularly pleasing personal moment, offering an early demonstration of the attacking contribution he can potentially provide from what is more traditionally regarded as a defensive position. Having summer signings contribute directly to the scoreline in this manner provides McInnes with valuable early evidence regarding how effectively his new recruits are settling into the broader tactical framework he’s looking to implement at Ibrox.
Saturday’s fixture provided a valuable early opportunity for several of Rangers’ summer signings to begin showcasing their qualities in a genuinely competitive match environment. Alongside goalscorer Ross McCrorie, both Ben Godfrey and Dan Neil also featured prominently in the encounter, giving McInnes his first proper chance to assess how these particular additions might begin to integrate within his broader tactical setup and overall squad dynamic.
Godfrey’s involvement will have been of particular interest given the versatile nature of his defensive profile, with the on-loan Atalanta defender brought in specifically to add greater depth and flexibility to Rangers’ backline options. Similarly, Dan Neil’s continued involvement in these early pre-season fixtures offers further opportunity for the experienced midfielder, who arrived at Ibrox as a free agent following his departure from Sunderland, to begin building understanding and combinations with his new Rangers teammates ahead of the competitive season getting underway.
However, not all of Rangers’ summer recruits were available for selection on Saturday, with both Lawrence Shankland and Ivor Pandur notably absent from the matchday squad. Both players remain unavailable having been involved in this summer’s World Cup tournament with their respective national teams, Scotland and Croatia, and neither is expected to return to full training with their new Rangers teammates until later this month. Given the significance of both signings, particularly the £6 million capture of Croatian international goalkeeper Pandur, their continued absence means McInnes remains unable to properly assess how these two marquee additions will ultimately fit into his broader plans, at least for the time being.
The absence of Shankland and Pandur forms part of a much broader pattern of disruption affecting Rangers’ pre-season preparations this particular summer, with McInnes having been forced to work with what has been described as a notably depleted squad throughout these opening weeks of his tenure. Beyond the two aforementioned summer signings, a considerable number of established first-team players also remain unavailable for selection, with Liam Kelly, John Souttar, and Findlay Curtis all yet to return for pre-season training alongside their teammates.
Further afield, Rangers also continue to be without the services of Belgian midfielder Nicolas Raskin and Norwegian international Thelo Aasgaard, with both players still fully occupied competing in the last 16 stages of this summer’s World Cup tournament. Having such a significant number of established first-team players still unavailable due to varying stages of international tournament commitment represents a considerable ongoing challenge for McInnes as he continues attempting to build cohesion, understanding, and tactical familiarity across his full squad ahead of the new campaign.
Given the calibre and importance of the players still missing, it seems likely that supporters will need to exercise continued patience before getting a proper sense of Rangers’ true strength and tactical identity under their new manager, with several key figures not expected to be fully integrated and available for selection until considerably later in the pre-season period.
With so many established first-team players currently unavailable, Saturday’s fixture provided a valuable platform for several fringe and squad players to stake their claim for greater involvement once the competitive season eventually gets underway. Players such as Lyall Cameron, Tuur Rommens, Nedim Bajrami, and Ryan Naderi, all of whom found the net during Saturday’s comprehensive victory, will have used this particular opportunity to demonstrate to their new manager exactly what they can offer, at a time when regular starting places and squad positions remain very much up for grabs.
For a squad currently missing so many of its more prominent and established performers, these kinds of behind-closed-doors friendly fixtures represent crucial early opportunities for fringe players to make a positive impression on McInnes and potentially force their way into greater first-team contention as the season approaches. Given the sheer number of goals shared across such a wide range of contributors on Saturday, it’s clear that several of these fringe options took full advantage of their opportunity to impress, offering early encouraging signs regarding the overall depth and attacking quality currently available within the broader Rangers squad.
Beyond the specifics of Saturday’s convincing victory, this latest update also sheds considerable light on the broader changes McInnes has been implementing regarding Rangers’ overall pre-season planning and preparation since taking charge at Ibrox. Notably, plans that had originally been arranged under previous manager Danny Rohl for the squad to travel to Austria for a warm-weather training camp later this month have now been officially scrapped, with McInnes evidently keen to implement his own distinct ideas and preferences regarding how his squad should best prepare for the forthcoming campaign.
In place of the previously arranged Austrian trip, McInnes has instead opted for a change of itinerary that will see the Rangers squad travel to Spain next week for their warm-weather training camp. This represents a clear and deliberate decision from the new manager to establish his own methods and preferences from the very outset of his tenure, rather than simply continuing with pre-existing arrangements that had been put in place under the previous coaching regime.
Alongside the change in training camp destination, it’s also been confirmed that a previously reported friendly fixture against Czech side Sparta Prague, which had been due to take place abroad on July 16, has now also been cancelled as part of this broader overhaul of Rangers’ pre-season schedule. This further underlines the scale of changes McInnes has been willing to implement regarding the club’s preparation methods, even at this relatively early stage of his tenure as Ibrox boss.
With the Sparta Prague fixture now cancelled and the Austrian training camp scrapped in favour of the alternative Spanish trip, Rangers’ revised pre-season schedule now appears considerably different to what had originally been planned under Danny Rohl’s stewardship. As things currently stand, it’s understood that Rangers’ only remaining pre-season fixture scheduled to take place on home soil will be a friendly against Premier League side West Ham United, set to be staged on July 25.
That particular fixture will arrive just five days before Rangers officially commence their Scottish Premiership campaign, with McInnes’s side set to begin the new season with an away trip to face Dundee United. Given the proximity of the West Ham fixture to the start of the competitive campaign, that particular match is likely to take on considerable significance in terms of offering McInnes his final proper opportunity to fine-tune his tactical approach and assess his squad’s readiness before competitive Scottish Premiership action gets underway in earnest.
Facing Premier League opposition in West Ham represents a notably strong and demanding test for Rangers to conclude their pre-season preparations, offering a valuable measure of where the squad currently stands in terms of overall quality and readiness, when set against considerably higher-level opposition than the various domestic Scottish sides they’ve been testing themselves against throughout the earlier stages of pre-season.
McInnes’s decision to substantially overhaul Rangers’ pre-season schedule, scrapping both the previously arranged Austrian training camp and the scheduled friendly against Sparta Prague, represents one of the clearer early indications of the new manager’s determination to establish his own distinct methods and approach from the very beginning of his tenure at Ibrox. Rather than simply inheriting and continuing with arrangements that had been put in place under his predecessor, McInnes has instead moved swiftly to implement changes that reflect his own personal preferences and philosophy regarding effective pre-season preparation.
Such decisions often reflect a new manager’s previous positive experiences with particular training facilities, locations, or overall preparation methods, and it will be fascinating to observe whether this switch to Spanish warm-weather training ultimately proves beneficial in helping Rangers build the kind of cohesion, fitness, and tactical understanding required before the new season eventually gets underway.
Given the various changes and cancellations affecting Rangers’ pre-season schedule, McInnes now finds himself working with what appears to be a notably compressed preparation window before competitive action gets underway. With the Spanish training camp scheduled for next week, followed by what will now be the club’s only home pre-season fixture against West Ham on July 25, and the Scottish Premiership campaign then commencing away at Dundee United just five days later, there appears to be relatively little margin for error or significant adjustment before McInnes needs his squad fully prepared and ready for competitive action.
This compressed timeline makes the ongoing absence of so many key first-team players, due to their various international World Cup commitments, an even more pressing concern for the new manager. With Raskin and Aasgaard both still competing in the tournament’s last 16 stages, and Pandur and Shankland not expected back until later this month, McInnes faces a genuine race against time to ensure these important players are properly integrated, fit, and tactically prepared before the opening weeks of the new Premiership campaign.
Despite the various challenges and disruptions currently affecting Rangers’ pre-season preparations, Saturday’s convincing victory over Raith Rovers offers genuine early encouragement regarding the progress being made during these crucial opening weeks under McInnes’s guidance. Establishing such a commanding and high-scoring victory, even against a fixture involving several fringe players and summer signings still becoming acquainted with their new teammates and tactical setup, suggests a Rangers squad already demonstrating clear attacking intent and cohesion at this relatively early stage of preparations.
For a new manager still very much in the process of implementing his own tactical philosophy and getting to know his broader squad, this kind of decisive victory represents a valuable early marker, even if the true test of his methods and approach will only become fully apparent once the competitive season eventually gets underway against considerably stronger and more organised opposition than Saturday’s Championship visitors.
Taken together, the various developments outlined above, from Saturday’s convincing victory to the broader overhaul of Rangers’ pre-season schedule, paint a picture of a new manager moving decisively and confidently to establish his own methods, preferences, and broader footballing philosophy at Ibrox. Whether it’s his willingness to scrap previously arranged plans in favour of his own preferred alternatives, or his approach to utilising these early friendly fixtures as genuine opportunities to assess and develop his fringe players, McInnes appears to be approaching his new role with a clear sense of purpose and direction.
Given the scale of the broader rebuilding project currently underway at Ibrox, both in terms of incoming transfer activity and these various tactical and logistical adjustments to pre-season preparation, these early weeks represent a crucial foundation-building period for the new manager and his coaching staff. Saturday’s convincing victory over Raith Rovers, while certainly encouraging, represents merely an early step in what promises to be a lengthy and detailed process of building genuine cohesion, understanding, and competitive readiness across the full breadth of the Ibrox squad ahead of a hugely significant campaign.
As Rangers now prepare to embark on their revised pre-season schedule, all eyes will turn towards the upcoming Spanish training camp, which promises to represent one of the most significant and concentrated periods of preparation before the new competitive campaign eventually gets underway. With key absentees including Pandur, Shankland, Raskin, and Aasgaard all expected to gradually reintegrate with the squad over the coming weeks, McInnes will be hoping to have his full complement of first-team players available and properly prepared as the crucial West Ham friendly, and subsequently the opening day trip to Dundee United, draw ever closer.
Given the compressed nature of the remaining preparation window, every training session and remaining fixture will take on increased significance as McInnes looks to build the kind of squad cohesion and tactical understanding required to hit the ground running once competitive Scottish Premiership action gets underway. Saturday’s win at Auchenhowie represents just the first small step in that ongoing process, but it’s certainly one that will have offered plenty of early encouragement to a Rangers support eager to see genuine signs of progress under their new manager.
Derek McInnes will take genuine early encouragement from his experimental side’s convincing 5-1 victory over Raith Rovers, even accounting for the numerous notable absentees and the informal, behind-closed-doors nature of Saturday’s fixture at Auchenhowie. With recent signings Ross McCrorie, Ben Godfrey, and Dan Neil all given valuable minutes to begin showcasing their qualities, and several fringe players seizing their opportunity to impress amid a lengthy list of World Cup-related absentees, this represents merely an early glimpse of what promises to be an extensive and carefully managed pre-season preparation process. With the previously planned Austrian training camp and Sparta Prague friendly now scrapped in favour of a fresh approach centred around Spain and a solitary home fixture against West Ham, McInnes has already demonstrated a clear willingness to implement his own distinct methods and philosophy as he continues building towards what promises to be a hugely significant campaign at Ibrox.
