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The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
Sport
David Irvine

Michael Beale in Rangers half time 'strong words' admission

Michael Beale has admitted he had "strong words" with his Rangers players at half-time in the Champions League second leg clash against Servette.

The Ibrox boss made certain his side were under no illusions over the task at hand after a sloppy first half display in Switzerland.

He explained: "It was a really slow start. The crowd was up, it was a warm night and we conceded a goal.

"We needed to dig in and Jack made some good saves. We have moments in the first half but the biggest one was Danilo’s miss. It was a fantastic cross from Cifuentes and I thought he had another really positive night on his second start. Nico Raskin and him were good.

"We had strong words at half-time because it wasn’t the performance we were looking for in loads of areas.

"I thought we improved greatly in the second half and played with more control and tempo.

"It was a fantastic goal, with an excellent cross from Borna and James got in at the far post. We could’ve extended our lead as we had some fantastic chances."

The 3-2 aggregate triumph sets up a play-off round tie against PSV Eindhoven in a straight shoot-out for a Champions League group stage spot.

On the upcoming tie - starting with the first leg at Ibrox next week - Beale said: "They have an excellent coach and they’ve recruited well. They spent big money this summer and they are a good team.

"The atmosphere will be great in both games and there’s nothing not to love about a knockout game to get into the Champions League.

"It’s what these players dream of so let’s have a right go. Let’s not have any regrets over the two legs and make sure it’s a cauldron at Ibrox."

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