Steven Gerrard insists doubts raised over mentality of Rangers players were 'unjustified'

Rangers manager Steven Gerrard has hit back at critics who questioned the mentality of his team but admits they still have to prove they are capable of sustaining a title challenge.

Alfredo Morelos celebrates with Glen Kamara and Joe Aribo after scoring Rangers' second goal against St Mirren on Wednesday as they racked up a 13th consecutive win in the Scottish Premiership. (Photo by Mark Runnacles/Getty Images)

Familiar doubts over whether Rangers can breast the finishing tape in domestic competitions were raised in the aftermath of their shock 3-2 defeat at St Mirren in the Betfred Cup on December 16, meaning a seventh unsuccessful bid for silverware since Gerrard’s appointment in the summer of 2018.

It remains their only loss of the season and they have responded with four Premiership wins since then, taking their current run of consecutive victories in the league to 13 and establishing a 16-point lead in the title race.

Rangers will look to increase that advantage over Celtic to 19 points when they face their Old Firm foes at Ibrox on Saturday and Gerrard believes any fair verdict on his squad should only come at the end of the campaign.

“I judge my players over the course of a season, not just on the one game,” said Gerrard. “Everyone has an off night.

“I took responsibility for that defeat in the cup because the team we picked, the way we played - everything was on me.

“But in the main, if you judge my players from the start of the season until now, I think it’s unjustified to question their mentality.

“But we know we have to keep it going and show we can go the duration of the season, not just the first six months of it.”

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