Manager Derek McInnes has warned his Rangers players they must improve significantly after a nervous 1-0 victory over Jablonec in their UEFA Conference League playoff.
A single strike from Ryan Naderi was enough to secure a slender first leg advantage at Ibrox on Thursday night, but the performance left the manager demanding more creativity and intelligence from his squad.
The Glasgow club were also reduced to ten men for the final 15 minutes of the match when substitute Cammy Devlin was dismissed for a reckless challenge on Jiri Slama.
Off the pitch, Rangers are working to bolster their attacking options. The club are understood to be close to finalising an 8.5 million pound deal for Girona winger Kim Min-Su from the Spanish top flight.
Speaking after the narrow win in Glasgow, McInnes did not hide his frustration with the opening 45 minutes against the Czech visitors. Rangers struggled to impose themselves on the game and lacked the necessary urgency in possession.
"I was disappointed with a lot of the first half," the Rangers manager said. "We didn't have any real impetus or concerted pressure, so I wasn't happy with it."
The UEFA Conference League is European football's third tier club competition. Reaching the group stage is a key objective for Rangers, providing essential continental competition experience and financial rewards for the Scottish Premiership side over the season ahead.
Red card for Devlin
McInnes felt his team failed to show enough thought and speed before the break in front of their home supporters. "We needed to bring a bit more intelligence but also be a bit more enthusiastic with some of our tempo and move the ball quicker," he added.
The hosts improved after the interval, establishing better control of the game without completely dominating their opponents. The manager noted that Jablonec failed to create many clear opportunities in front of the Rangers goal.
"I thought we were far better in the second half," McInnes said. "We connected the game better and that gave us a far better chance of causing them problems."
"I don't think Jablonec caused us too many problems in terms of goalmouth chances. I thought we looked a lot better."
Rangers could have extended their lead when Djeidi Gassama was presented with a clear opening, but the forward failed to convert from close range. McInnes identified the miss as a crucial turning point in the evening that could have provided a comfortable cushion.
"Djeidi Gassama has got to score and make it 2-0 with the chance he had, that was a big moment," the manager said.
VAR intervention at Ibrox
The closing stages of the match were complicated by Devlin's sending off. The midfielder was introduced in the 69th minute but lasted only a short time before a collision with Jablonec full back Slama.
Romanian referee Marian Barbu was advised by the Video Assistant Referee to review the incident on the pitchside monitor. Following the review, Barbu issued a straight red card for a high tackle.
McInnes accepted the decision without complaint, explaining that Devlin was attempting to win a penalty rather than maliciously injure his opponent.
"It was a red card, there's no debate," McInnes conceded. "I think it looks a hell of a lot worse than it actually was. I think what Cammy's trying to do, when he's trying to buy fouls, he's trying to stick his leg up and put his body in to be held because he's in the penalty box."
"He's obviously trying to feel a contact, but because his leg was up to try and put his body in, it's caught the boy on the shin. It looks terrible. When you see the stills of it, it looks like a red card all day long. But I think it looks worse than it actually was, if you know what I mean."
"The red card changed it because then it was about trying to manage the last 15 to 20 minutes of the game."
Building a stronger squad
Despite the unconvincing display, Rangers will travel to the Czech Republic with a lead to defend. McInnes acknowledged the positives of keeping a clean sheet and securing a victory in European competition.
"The positives are a clean sheet, another win, another goal for Ryan Naderi and we've got something to take to the Czech Republic," he said.
"In the bigger picture, we've still got a lot of work to do. But, in the meantime, it's important we win games. The enthusiasm and work rate was there in bucketloads but we need to show a wee bit more composure and poise."
"I just want us to be better to be honest. I think we have to be better. Normally in Europe, you don't get through a European tie if you only play well with one leg."
"We've got to make sure we're as strong as we can be next week, get a stronger performance, and I'm confident we've got enough in us to be able to do that."
Rangers have a free weekend before the return leg, as they have no domestic fixture scheduled. Their next Scottish Premiership match will be away against Aberdeen at Pittodrie on the following weekend.
Search for attacking options
The club will use the break in their calendar to focus on recruitment. Rangers cannot register new signings for the second leg against Jablonec, but they remain active in the transfer market, seeking two wingers and a striker.
The potential arrival of Korean winger Kim Min-Su from Spanish club Girona would add significant quality to the squad, and McInnes expects further business to be conducted shortly. Girona compete in La Liga, the highest division of football in Spain.
"We'll pick up on that straight after the game, with everybody involved," McInnes added. "We're trying in a few different areas to get the right players in, players with the right quality."
"We've been really focused on certain ones. I'm quite hopeful we can do one in the next few days. We're working extremely hard. I do think that having that extra level of pace and quality and invention in the top end of the pitch is going to be massive for us to improve."
"If we can get that, I'm pretty confident we can. If we can keep getting improvements, we can. I do feel before we go to Pittodrie a week on Sunday, we'd like to have a couple of additions in. The club are well aware of that, everybody's trying hard."
"As I said before, these ones are normally the more difficult ones to get, the ones where you're paying a bigger ticket money. But clearly, we could do with that. There's loads to work on. There's a lot of stuff in the first half that surprised me that should be a lot better."
