Rangers’ head coach Barry Ferguson said he had seen the heart and desire ” on the field at Rugby Park as they staged a dramatic return to win 4-2.
The former Ibrox captain, who won 15 trophies as a player, ended a 48 -hour whirlwind after replacing Philippe Clement by celebrating while travel fans sang his name.
Ferguson now asks that his players continue to show the same fight as they have done after taking strikes from Joe Wright and Brad Lyons, for the rest of the season.
“I’m not going to be overexcited. It was good, but there are a lot of things we need to improve and the guys also know it,” the 47 -year -old told Sky Sports.
“They were under this meticulous examination, but they have their hearts and desire.
“I wouldn’t have taken the job if I didn’t think I could get something. They showed them a different side tonight.
“I’m not going to get carried away, it’s just a match. They now have to take this on Saturday because they are at home and if it’s like after 10 minutes, the crowd begins to touch you a little touch.
“They must learn to face these situations. By spending the last 24 hours with them, I think they realize this situation now.”
Clinton Nsiala was replaced after 30 minutes at Rugby Park
After starting with the same departure XI as Clement Clement his position with a 2-0 defeat against St Mirren, Ferguson hung Clinton Nsiala at half an hour in difficulty in Kilmarnock.
“Sometimes, during a game where things are not going on in your sense, you need to make difficult decisions,” added Ferguson.
“Clinton is young, he will recover, but I just felt at this stage, we had to make the change and, obviously, it worked for us.
“We started controlling the game, we started to relax a bit.
“I thought we were a little tense, but their confidence was quite weak, so you have to pay attention to that.
“I told them that they were playing in a brilliant club, there are expectations and requests on you and you have to manage them, and I thought they had managed it, the last 10 to 15 minutes of the first half and certainly the 45 seconds, they were excellent.”
What the experts said
Please use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Barry Ferguson’s Rangers returned to 2-0 to take the three points against Kilmarnock in his first match in charge
Sky Sports experts discussed Ferguson’s debut in the Rangers canoe:
Former captain of the Rangers Steven Davis:
“Absolutely brilliant, I think the first half hour he had [Ferguson] Be really disappointed, but certainly after that, there was a great reaction from the team.
“They will be absolutely delighted to obtain victory. It is not an easy feat that comes from two goals behind here in Kilmarnock, so he will return to his home a happy man.”
Former Rangers striker Kris Boyd:
“I think that after this first half hour, you think:” Where are you okay? “And all of a sudden, it turns out that these are the same problems with which the rangers have been faced with the whole season.
“You must give credit to the players that Barry Ferguson has obviously made the substitution, brought Yilmaz, moved a few players, then you saw rangers click and get a good goal just before half-time.
“The second half, they completely dominated it and I think you can be satisfied with the performance after 30 minutes, but the same questions will always be asked, the Rangers are very, very vulnerable during the playing pieces.”
Former Scottish striker James McFadden:
“He was brought to try to reconnect the team with the supporters and lift all the mood. The way the game was actually mentioned would probably not have been better to come from two goals.
“As much as he would not have wanted to come from two goals, these fans certainly appreciated him.
“We talked about a long time, the Barry Ferguson coaches had to work with the players, then Barry explained how he wanted his team to play, and the ultimate goal of him is winning matches.”
Rangers’ to come:
- March 1: Motherwell (H) – Scottish Première
- March 6: Fenerbahce (A) – Europa League last 16
- March 13: Fenerbahce (H) – Europa League last 16
- March 16: Celtic (A) – Scottish Première, Live on Sky Sports
- March 29: Dundee (A) – Scottish Première, Live on Sky Sports
