Steven Gerrard says defenders must cut out 'flaky' moments
The Ibrox boss was unhappy with their defending as they drew 1-1 with Motherwell
Steven Gerrard's warning his defenders they need to cut out 'flaky' moments if they want to win more silverware.
Rangers squandered a one-goal lead at Ibrox against Motherwell as Kaiyne Woolery's strike meant the game finished 1-1.
Fashion Sakala scored the opener for the Light Blues but they were unable to build on that as the game progressed.
Gerrard says he's aware of the plaudits they got last season for their stellar defensive record - and says they need to work hard to get back to that.
He told Sky Sports: "We’ve got to defend situations better. We got a lot of praise last year for clean sheet and being really tough to play against.
“But their goal has come from us being a little bit flaky. We could have got out wide quicker, we could’ve dealt with that situation.
“Unfortunately we’ve conceded a goal off the back of that and that’s where the frustration comes in.
“If you look at the 90 minutes – we’ve created a lot of chances, we’ve got to the final third so many times but we’ve not rewarded ourselves for that good play.
“I’ve mentioned it now so we’ll see what type of reaction we get. If you keep having those moments, unfortunately you won’t get what you’re looking for at the end of the season.
“It feels really frustrating at the moment because it’s obviously two points dropped”.
Zambia international Fashion Sakala bagged his first competitive goal for the club after heading in from close range.
The 24-year old joined on a free transfer from Belgian outfit KV Oostende in the summer.
Their defeat to Motherwell was just his second start of the campaign and Steven Gerrard thinks he's now ready to make his mark.
He said: “You can see how lively he is with his pace. He gives us a different option up there.
“I think he’s settled now and he’s ready to explode at any given moment but he needs to keep on being hungry for goals.
“Today I think he was”.
Ryan Kent missed the match after being taken off injured during Thursday's defeat to Lyon.
The winger hurt his hamstring with Steven Gerrard saying he won't be available until at least the middle of October.
Gerrard added: “You won’t see him before the international break. Hopefully we’ll have him after the international break”.
Motherwell boss Graham Alexander says he was delighted with the efforts of his players.
He also revealed supporters gave them a send off at Fir Park before the game with no away fans allowed inside Ibrox.
He said: He said: "We know Rangers have great quality and they are going to ask you a lot of questions.
“But we stood up to that even though we were disappointed at the goal because of the obvious offside.
“Our focus after that was excellent. We always carried a threat and we got a goal from that threat.
“It was tough and it was hostile. We had to play against many opponents today, but you saw our players.
“They were backing each other, supporting each other and we knew we had that support back in Motherwell".