Concerned Brian Laudrup reckons Rangers are not even at the Champions League "starting point" when it comes to the mentality needed to get results in the group stage.
It's been a nightmare Group A campaign for Gio van Bronckhorst's men as they sit rock bottom of the section without securing a point or a goal so far, with a toothless 2-0 defeat to Liverpool the latest disappointing return for the Ibrox fans. Heavy defeats to Ajax and Napoli has seen any hopes of continuing their European adventure after the winter break quickly fade, in contrast to last season's surge to the Europa League Final.
Laudrup was quick to dish out blame for the lacklustre season in Europe as he insists his former Ibrox teammate Van Bronckhorst must take responsibility over the lack of belief show by Rangers when competing against Europes elite. He admits that The Light Blues find themselves in one of the toughest Champions League groups, but reckons the boss must be the one to remind them they still have hope of reaching the Europa League or knockouts.
Writing in his Daily Mail column, Laudrup said: "There seems a lack of belief within individuals and within the team. That's the biggest thing for me.
"We all understand the gulf in finance and quality the Champions League presents for Scottish clubs. I've experienced it myself and know how tough it can be. We also have to recognise that Rangers are in one of the tougher sections of this season's competition. That's a fact.
"No one sensible is demanding lots of big results against clubs with far greater resources. But that isn't the same as expecting to see a bit more within performances than we again witnessed at Anfield on Tuesday night. The starting point must be some self-confidence about competing at this elite level. If I'm being honest, I didn't see it against Liverpool. Without Allan McGregor's world class saves, they could have lost five or six goals.
"I think Giovanni van Bronckhorst must get into the minds of his players and emphasise what they have done at home in Europe over recent years. The Rangers players must remind themselves they are still in it. They are not far off Celtic in the Premiership and the cause isn't completely lost in Europe. Not yet. But it will be if they cannot impose themselves more at this level."
He also reckons there were several players who dropped well below the performance level expected on Merseyside. He singled out Malik Tillman, insisting the loanee hasn't been good enough for weeks.
Laudrup added: "Connor Goldson did okay, but James Tavernier and Borna Barisic were completely pushed back. The midfield didn't work.
"At times, it looked as though the tempo was too much for John Lundstram, which was a little surprising. Too many players lack conviction in these games. We saw it again with Ryan Kent. He had some chances to go one-on-one against a defender but chose the wrong option rather than being really positive and creating something.
"The incident where Kent lost the ball and Luis Diaz won a penalty encapsulated the huge difference between the teams.
"I don't want to be too critical of Malik Tillman as he is still young, but he really struggled. He's gone off the radar for a few weeks. He started so well at Rangers but now seems to find it difficult to keep to the pace of the game. And he's not really a right winger. None of the attacking players who started had any influence. It must have been a bit of a nightmare for Alfredo Morelos because he was left so isolated."
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