The former Ibrox star thinks the Rangers manager got his team wrong at Tynecastle.
The Gers surrendered their lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership table after only managing a 1-1 draw against Craig Levein’s side.
Chances were few and far between for the visitors, struggling to really get at Hearts.
Thompson was left surprised by the Ibrox boss’ team selection, noting that a number of players in the team had taken part in international duty the week prior, perhaps causing fatigue.
He also feels attacker Greg Stewart could have added something to the performance if selected from the start.
As quoted by The Scottish Sun, the BBC man said: “I felt Steven Gerrard might have made more changes to his team for the Hearts game.
“I didn’t really mention it on Sportscene on Sunday night, but Rangers had a few players who were away on international duty last week. It struck me they should have altered the line-up a little bit.
“Greg Stewart has been on fire recently, and I thought he could have played from the start.”
Should Stewart have started?
It must be noted that the 29-year-old came into the game with 15 minutes remaining and didn’t make much of an impact. However, Thompson does have a point about his recent form.
He scored and assisted in a 5-0 rout of Aberdeen, creating another assist in another 5-0 win over Hamilton. He was a big part of both performances so it was a surprise to see him omitted from the Hearts clash.
As for rotating the team because of international duty, that likely didn’t have much of an impact. Gerrard has consistently picked his strongest team of late regardless of schedule.
Their performances on Sunday haven’t been impacted by Thursday European fixtures this season, for example.
Ultimately it was the team’s attitude to the game and individual errors that let them down, not their energy levels. Whether that influences Gerrard’s next selection remains to be seen.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
