Rangers manager Steven Gerrard believes his side made a “crucial” mistake in the final minutes of extra time of their Scottish Cup defeat by St. Johnstone as he criticised his players’ game-management before allowing the Saints to equalise with the last kick of the ball.
Gerrard’s side would lose 4-2 on penalties as the McDiarmid Park side now look to complete an unlikely cup double, with the Rangers boss full of praise for St. Johnstone’s organisation and defensive stubbornness.
The Rangers boss insisted that his side made the best chances in the 120 minutes but were punished for their own mistakes and failing to push higher up the pitch and keeping Saints on the back foot in the closing minutes of the quarter-final clash.
“We again have been stung by not being able to see the game out. This is a tough game tonight and credit to St Johnstone, they defended well and were organised and stubborn,” Gerrard said, as quoted by Glasgow Live.
“We kept asking questions and looking to create and probe and over the 90 and 120 minutes it was us who created the best chances and probably deserved to win the game but cup football doesn’t always work like that, you don’t always get what you deserve.
“One thing that is crucial is the final moment when you get yourself in front and we managed to get the breakthrough with a fantastic goal by James, and then we need to manage the ball better up by the corner flags.
“We need to be further up the pitch, we need to be higher up the pitch and maybe stop the game by being clever.
“We never did that well enough and then someone who is 6ft 8in for some reason is free in the box, that can’t happen.
“That’s on me, that’s on us. We have to accept responsibility for it.”
In other news, Boyhood Rangers fan Zander Clark joked he was ‘devasted’ after shock Cup triumph
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