It is safe to say that Barry Ferguson has endured a difficult start to life as Rangers manager. They might have won his opening game against Kilmarnock but that was followed by a defeat at the hands of Motherwell. And now, they are facing an extremely difficult run of fixtures. They will face Jose Mourinho's Fenerbahce team home and away before travelling to Parkhead to take on Celtic.
It goes without saying that this will be a tough test, not only for the Rangers players but also their new interim head coach. Before this, Ferguson's coaching spells had come in the lower divisions with teams like Alloa Athletic, Kelty Hearts and Clyde.
So, it remains to be seen if he is able to deal with the step up or not. One thing is clear though, the Rangers cannot keep on performing like they did against Motherwell.
Ferguson has no doubts about what might happen in the upcoming crucial matches if they turn in the same sort of display. As reported by STV News, the Rangers boss said:
"It’s clear they will suffer a heavy defeat. I’m not going to sit here and try and kid people on.
“That level of performance, certainly in the first half, is nowhere near the standards that are needed.
“It’s my job now in this short period of time and I’m going to just go and work my backside off to make sure this gets sorted.
“I spoke to them in the dressing room, they understand it. Rangers fans can accept you not playing well. What Rangers fans can’t accept is when your team gets run over the top of in the first 45 minutes."
Celtic fans will love Barry Ferguson's warning to Rangers players
Of course, Celtic will want to win the next Glasgow Derby, perhaps even more so than usual. While the result might not have an effect on the title race, considering their 16-point lead, one cannot forget that the Hoops lost 3-0 at Ibrox in their last outing against the Rangers.
They were not particularly great in the Glasgow Derby before that. They drew 3-3 at Hampden Park in the Scottish League Cup final and only won on penalties.
So, there is a need for a statement performance for Celtic. Just to remind everybody about the best team in Glasgow. But before that, they have to focus on the Scottish Cup quarter-finals against Hibernian, who are in terrific form and recently defeated the Hoops as well, at Easter Road.