The higher you go in football, the bigger the fall can be.
And at a club like Rangers there will always be people who question whether or not you can cut it.
But any doubts about Gio van Bronckhorst as manager were surely put to bed on Thursday night.
The victory over Borussia Dortmund in the Europa League was a huge moment for my old team-mate as gaffer.
Because his half-time team talk on Thursday night and the tactical masterstroke he pulled off was absolutely key in getting Rangers through.
It was outstanding from Gio.
And when I saw the change from a four to a five at the back, with John Lundstram going from midfield to the centre of defence, I thought that I had seen it somewhere before.
My mind was cast back to Monaco in September 2000.
Out of nowhere, Dick Advocaat did the same thing by moving Tugay into a sweeper role.
It surprised everyone but worked a treat. Honestly, Tugay was unbelievable that night as we beat the French side 1-0 away in the Champions League.
And who scored the winning goal? Giovanni, of course.
His tactical switch on Thursday night reminded me of that. Whatever you might think of Advocaat, when it came to stuff like that he was just outstanding as a coach. And Gio is obviously showing signs of that now too.
A top coach should always be expected to have a Plan B and Plan C to try to win any game.
Gio knew how he wanted to start the game against Dortmund.
But by half-time, he could see Borussia were getting better and better as the game was going on.
They were creating too many chances and had gone 2-1 up.
He had to do something.
Going to the back five and getting an extra body in midfield got Rangers right back in the game.
They also looked dangerous going forward with Ryan Kent playing just off Alfredo Morelos.
It got in the minds of Dortmund and they couldn’t cope with it.
Obviously, Gio needed the players to execute the plan. But just like the first leg in Germany, they produced a proper team performance.
Dortmund still had more possession, as you’d expect.
The difference after half-time was the lack of space for them to work in behind Rangers’ defence. That’s what won the game and Giovanni has to take huge credit for that.
Borussia Dortmund are a top European side. So to score six over two legs and stay unbeaten, that’s amazing.
It’s Giovanni’s best moment at Rangers so far. He proved against Dortmund that he’s a top manager.
He’s had experience with Feyenoord and trust me, if you’re not a good coach you don’t win trophies in Holland, like he did by getting a double.
But it always takes a bit of time to develop things at a new club.
If you change tactics or drop points, the critics will be out at Rangers. He’ll always face that, even domestically at Ibrox.
But he showed everyone what he’s capable of on Thursday.
And what a time to do it, on a big European night at Ibrox. The atmosphere looked incredible.
Gio’s big players stood up again. I thought Kent – just like in Germany – was fantastic.
And James Tavernier was superb, scoring both goals.
That’s what you expect from a real captain.
He took responsibility with the penalty then pushed himself up front to get the second one.
He got that goal because he wanted it so badly. He’s a right-back so had no right to be in that position to score. But the boy is an absolute machine.
Like I said about Gio, there will always be people who doubt Tavernier. That’s just the way it is at Rangers.
Whether it’s captaincy or management, you always have to face these things.
And Tavernier has answered all the questions asked of him.
I heard on German TV on Thursday night that Rangers weren’t a “top shelf” team in Europe.
Maybe that’s why clubs here or in England haven’t tried to buy Tavernier.
I don’t know but he should be on the list of many clubs when they’re looking for a right-back. His goals and assists record speaks for itself.
Kent is the same, he should be on the radar of big clubs. Maybe they don’t watch Scottish football or expect more because they’re playing against the likes of Motherwell or Livingston.
But going by what they’ve done in Europe, especially against Dortmund, clubs have to be looking at these players.
Rangers have Red Star Belgrade in the next round and it’s possible to progress again. But there were no easy ties, only top teams were left.
Belgrade will have an electric atmosphere too. But Rangers have a real chance of reaching the last eight.
I know Celtic fans will be saying they have an advantage in the league by not playing in Europe.
But as a player I always wanted to be in as many competitions as possible to give you a better chance of trophies.
Celtic can focus on one thing now, the title. But I’d still rather be at Rangers, in the last 16 of a European tournament.
By getting to this stage, you know you’re doing something right.
Do you think Rangers would prefer to lose both games to Red Star to concentrate on the Premiership? No chance.
Gio and the boys will be thinking they can reach a semi-final or final now, which would be massive. And with every step in Europe, it helps the club financially to strengthen the squad.
But at Rangers the next game is always the most important.
The Dortmund one is finished now and it’s all about Motherwell today.
