Rangers' Mohamed Diomande lifts lid on Barry Ferguson tutelage and scrap with 'very tough' Aberdeen ace

Rangers midfielder Mohamed Diomande is the first to admit that he did not enjoy last Thursday night at Ibrox.

Not down to the score. Rangers’ 0-0 draw with Athletic Bilbao in the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final was a triumph given the played almost the whole game with ten men following Robin Propper’s red card. But because Diomande was suspended, forced to watch from the stands due to an accumulation of yellow cards in the competition.

The Ivorian made his return as half-time substitute on Sunday in the 2-2 Premiership draw with Aberdeen at Pittodrie and now thoughts turn to Bilbao, with Rangers aiming to reach the semi-finals of the competition.

Mohamed Diomande hopes to be involved in Rangers' match with Athletic Bilbao on Thursday. | SNS Group

“You want to get out there, you know,” said Diomande. “It's very unlucky to have to watch a game from the stands. It was difficult for me to sit down, to not try to move for every action. Then I was really glad with what my team did, with their effort, with their commitment and the fight they had for each other.

“I hope [to start, but], I don't know what the starting XI is going to be for Thursday. We still have two trainings before we go. So I'm going to give my best in training and I really hope I get a chance to play on Thursday and help my team.

“Like we all know, we've done really well in our away games in Europe and Thursday is going to be another one. We are really looking forward to it. I'm very confident and I know something great is going to come our way this time.”

Diomande has watched Bilbao a few times and now well-versed on what to expect at the San Mames this week. “I’ve seen them play before and I've watched La Liga a lot also,” he continued. “I think they have some great individual players and I think my teammates were able to deal with that, the individual players and the individual quality they had.

“They are going to play at home and maybe they have their home advantage, but then, like I said, they are going to be ready for a full fight, yes.”

Diomande revealed that he is learning different parts to his game under interim head coach Barry Ferguson, who played a similar position to him. “He has really helped me,” said Diomande. “He was a great midfielder and I want to be better and I think he was a good player. He’s really pushing me with the small things like how to dominate the spaces I get in the midfield.

“It’s really tight there and he just wants me to be in the right position every time. When you have the ball, when you don't have the ball, I think these small things are adding up to my game and I'm getting better every day as a player.”

Mohamed Diomande enjoyed the midfield battle with Aberdeen captain Graeme Shinnie. | SNS Group

Diomande’s appearance helped Rangers come back from two goals down to prepare for Bilbao with a 2-2 draw against Aberdeen and he enjoyed a battle with Dons skipper Graeme Shinnie.

“Yes, I mean he's part of the game and I think he's a good guy but on the pitch he's a bit tough,” added Diomande. “I like that also because I'm also tough on the pitch and I'm not going to be taken down easily. So if he steps on my toes then I'm going to stand up for myself.

“I think that's what happened and after the game we shook each other’s hand and then we moved on.”