Pedro Caixinha insists no player is guaranteed to start Rangers’ Scottish Cup semi-final – but should Martyn Waghorn be looking over his shoulder?
Pedro Caixinha has already left Rangers supporters in no doubt that he has the appetite and the self-confidence to make a big decision.
After substituting three defenders at half-time against Motherwell and naming his team 30 hours before the midweek clash with Kilmarnock, the Portuguese boss once again wrote headlines by dropping Barrie McKay on Sunday, as reported by the Daily Record.
The Scottish winger, an almost undisputed starter under previous manager Mark Warburton, had flattered to deceive in recent weeks and this weekend’s stunning 3-0 win away at second placed Aberdeen vindicated Caixinha’s call.
And the 46-year-old insists that no player is safe from the axe at Ibrox ahead of the Scottish Cup semi-final against Celtic in two weeks’ time.
“I will send a message to our players: ‘If some of them think they can slow down on Saturday they will not be playing at Hampden. It is that clear,” Caixinha, who has also subbed off Emerson Hyndman before the hour in the last two games, told the Daily Record.
One player in particular should perhaps think about making a few early trips into training over the next few days. Martyn Waghorn is now three games without a goal but his overall performance against Aberdeen will surely have been enough to concern Caixinha.
The forward regularly picked the wrong option at Pittodrie with his erratic finishing, though this was not the first time Waghorn has disappointed from the start in recent weeks.
And with Joe Dodoo coming off the bench to great effect, setting up one goal, scoring another and even finding the time to rattle the bar, the former Sunderland youngster may find his place under threat ahead of that trip to Hampden Park.
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