Home > News Archive > November 2001

Friday 30th November 2001

League Cup Semi draw Celtic and Rangers could meet in the CIS Insurance Cup semi-final for the second successive year. In the other semi-final, First Division Ayr will face Hibernian. The games will be played on February 5/6 with the venues still to be decided. Klos signs new deal Stefan Klos has extended his deal with the Light Blues by signing a two-year extension to his contract, keeping him at Ibrox until 2005. Klos also insisted he has no intention of moving down south and following wantaway midfielder Claudio Reyna out of the Ibrox door. Klos said: "I don't have that dream to play in the English Premiership. It was a big move from Dortmund to Rangers for me, and I enjoy playing here. I never came here and thought I could get a better move to England. I don't think that way. Maybe for others, like Giovanni van Bronckhorst, he even said when he signed for Rangers that he wanted to move on - it is always a personal decision. Some players will move and some will stay - that happens everywhere. It is always a personal decision from players, and that is the way it is. For me it is early to sign an extension. But the policy at the club is that they try to sign players on longer deals. You must make up your mind what you are going to do. I spoke to my family, and we like it in Scotland. It wasn't a hard decision because we like it here and I like playing for Rangers. It is a good sign when the club comes to the player to sign an extension - even when you have got a year left on your contract. We have a good team, and Rangers are a big club." Advocaat said: "Stefan has signed an extension, which we are pleased about. It is still quite difficult to keep the players here, but he showed his trust in the club. That is good news." Moore returns to squad Rangers welcome back Arthur Numan and Craig Moore to the squad for the trip to Dundee. Wing-back Numan missed the CIS Cup tie at Ross County through injury while defender Moore was away on World Cup duty with Australia. Fernando Ricksen, Neil McCann and Christian Nerlinger are all still out while Lorenzo Amoruso is suspended.

Thursday 29th November 2001

Reyna rejects new deal Claudio Reyna has rejected Rangers' offer of an extended and appears to be destined for a move to the English Premiership. Rangers reportedly offer the American midfielder a new five year deal worth £30,000 per week, but David Murray confirmed that the contract offer was turned down. Murray said: "We would like him to stay until the end of the season, but it may only be a matter of time now before he leaves. If the right offer comes in he may be able to go before then. We did make an offer hoping he would extend his contract because, like all our good players, both the manager and myself wanted him to stay. Although a very good deal was put on the table, he made it very clear that his ambition was to play in the Premiership." Sunderland will be amongst the first in the queue after having a £3.5million bid turned down last week, but any move will be timed to suit Rangers as the midfielder still has 18 months remaining on his current deal.

Tuesday 27th November 2001

£10,000 fine for Ball Rangers have fined England defender Michael Ball 10,000 pounds following his touchline clash with manager Dick Advocaat. Ball was involved in a furious exchange with Advocaat after being substituted during Sunday's 2-1 defeat by Scottish rivals Celtic. Advocaat told Sky Sports television on Tuesday: "This morning I spoke with him and we have given him a fine of £10,000 and we will give that to Cash for Kids. He will be involved again with the football. He said 'I did something wrong' and he realises that. That's the reason we gave him the fine and he understands that - probably he realised too late what he did. I discussed it with him, he got a fine and it's over now." Advocaat staying for now Dick Advocaat insists he will not walk away from Ibrox before the end of the season - but left a question mark hanging over his future beyond then. The Dutchman is remaining tight-lipped over whether he will extend his contract once the deal expires in the summer and will make an announcement on that issue next month. Celtic extended their lead over Rangers at the top of the table to 10 points following their 2-1 win at Parkhead on Sunday - the fifth Old Firm game Rangers have lost in a row. Advocaat is one of the favourites to take over the Holland job, a position he held during the 1994 World Cup in the United States. But he insists neither that speculation nor Rangers poor form will prompt him to leave the Govan club before the end of the season. He said: "The position is quite clear - I will definitely stay until the end of the season and, for the rest, you will have to wait. I have given an answer on my future so I don't want to keep going on about that." Although Rangers' chances of stopping Celtic winning the league have been reduced dramatically since Sunday, Advocaat still believes there is a chance they can catch their city rivals. Both teams meet twice again this season and Advocaat is relying on taking points from those games to get his own side's title charge back on track. And he has warned his players they must not give up hope of clinching the title either. He added: "It is always the same story in this country - if you lose then the mood is not good and if you win everyone is happy. We are 10 points behind Celtic but we also know that anything is possible. If they lose one game it is only seven points. We have to play two games against them. We are still involved in the league and in the cup competition so everything is open - that's what we told the players this morning. There is no reason to say that it is over because it is still alive."

Wednesday 21st November 2001

Reyna bid knocked back Rangers have rejected a bid for midfielder Claudio Reyna from Sunderland. The Premiership side offered a reported £3.5million for the US international. But Ibrox chairman David Murray insists that the player is an integral part of the team for the future. Murray said: "We are coming into one of the most important weeks of the season for the club and there is no way we would sell one of our first team regulars. In fact, our aim is to keep Claudio, not sell him.We have opened talks with his agent with a view to extending his contract - something we have been doing recently with other players who we rate as important to the future of the club."

Tuesday 20th November 2001

Wolves make permanent Miller bid - source Rangers are considering an offer from Wolves for young striker Kenny Miller who has been on loan with the Nationwide First Division club. Miller broke his collarbone while on loan at the Molineux club but did enough to impress boss Dave Jones. Now the Division One high-flyers are keen to make the move permanent and have tabled an offer, reported to be in the region of £2million. Rangers chairman David Murray told the Daily Mail: "I would prefer not to sell Kenny but every player has his price. The fact is that, when we have everybody fit, then we have 27 first team players competing for a limited number of places at the club. Not everyone can play under those circumstances. Wolves have made an offer for Kenny and we are currently considering it." Surprise Hughes move? Michael Hughes could be set for a surprise move to Ibrox, as Rangers boss Dick Advocaat seeks to add a left-sided player to his squad. Rangers are a left-sided midfielder down after summer signing Christian Nerlinger was forced to undergo an operation last week in America to repair a dislodged bone in his foot. Hughes, capped almost 60 times by Northern Ireland, would certainly fill that vacant position immediately, although Barcelona winger Marc Overmars has also hinted he would be keen on a move to Ibrox. Leicester are also believed to be keen on Hughes, and Terry Burton may be forced to cash-in on the player in order to bring some funds into the club. If the move does go through quickly it could even lead to the intriguing prospect of Hughes lining up against international midfield team-mate Neil Lennon in this weekend's Old Firm showdown at Parkhead. Rangers have a history of making signings at this stage of the season after Ronald de Boer arrived from Barcelona last season, and Neil McCann's move from Hearts to Rangers in Advocaat's first season. Rangers have been unavailable for comment on the subject of Hughes

Thursday 15th November 2001

BBC to screen PSG clash

Tuesday 13th November 2001

Dick named Manager ot the Month Dick Advocaat was today named as Bank of Scotland Manager of the Month for October. The Rangers boss was presented with his award at the club's Murray Park training centre. Advocaat guided Rangers to five straight wins last month, including three SPL victories over Kilmarnock, St Johnstone and Livingston, a CIS Cup success over Airdrie and a Uefa Cup win over Moscow Dynamo. The Dutchman put his success down to being able to field an almost unchanged team every week for the first time in the past 18 months. Advocaat said: "It's been a long time since I last got my hands on this award but hopefully I won't have to wait so long next time. I think the players have responded well in the last six or seven weeks, playing some excellent football and scoring a lot of goals which is also important, but the way we have been playing has been the most encouraging aspect. Obviously the return of so many key players from injury has been crucial because, in recent weeks, we have been able to field the same line-up in consecutive weeks and it's been a long time since that was possible." Mols targets PSG comeback Michael Mols has set his sights on Rangers' Uefa Cup clash with Paris St Germain later this month after his latest comeback from injury. The Dutch striker emerged unscathed from a run-out for the reserves against Celtic's second string at Airdrie. He said: "The most important thing is to train with the top team for a couple of weeks and hopefully I can get some games, maybe in the Uefa Cup."

Thursday 8th November 2001

Caniggia to miss Diego benefit Claudio Caniggia has pulled out of the Diego Maradona farewell game in Argentina because of a hamstring injury. Caniggia had hoped to star in the game against the Argentinian national team in Buenos Aires on Saturday as a tribute to his close friend. He also viewed it as a last chance to force his way into the national side in time for the World Cup finals. Last week, Rangers manager Dick Advocaat had been prepared to let him go but after the hamstring problem flared up it was decided it would be best not to make the lengthy flight to South America. Instead, the disappointed 34-year-old has flown to Italy for treatment. He told The Scottish Sun: "I am a professional and I have to do what the people who put their faith in me tell me to do. So I cannot go. Dick Advocaat, the (club) doctor and myself all agree the best thing is for me to stay in Scotland. The best thing for my Ibrox career is to avoid the Maradona game and concentrate on my recovery. The club have been so good to me and I cannot put my Rangers career in danger. I'm sad to miss Diego's big night but Rangers have a lot of important games coming up. It may have been a disaster to travel." McClelland appointed vice-chairman Rangers have appointed board member John McClelland as vice-chairman. McClelland, who is president of the 3Com corporation business networks company, will oversee the club's business activities in conjunction with the four-man executive board. His new role is designed to allow chairman David Murray to concentrate on the football side, with manager Dick Advocaat set to announce in the New Year whether he is to leave the club when his contract expires in the summer. Murray said: "I am delighted to have John take up this key appointment at Rangers. It will be of great assistance and will allow me personally to prioritise more on the footballing aspects of the club's activities. John's extensive experience will be invaluable." McClelland, who has also worked for IBM and Philips, added: "I am pleased to have my existing participation at Rangers enhanced in this way." Vidmar looks to leave Tony Vidmar will ask for a transfer when he returns from international duty with Australia at the end of the month. The 31-year-old has jetted off Down Under with Ibrox colleague Craig Moore to prepare for a World Cup play-off with the fifth-placed South American nation, whose identity will be known in the next few days. Vidmar and Moore are also set to play in the controversial friendly with France this weekend and will therefore miss two Rangers league games, including the Old Firm derby at Celtic Park, plus the first leg of the UEFA Cup clash with Paris St Germain. Moore is one of the first names on the team-sheet at Ibrox but Vidmar has not started a game since Sunday September 16. And with new £6.5million signing Michael Ball fit and waiting for his chance Vidmar knows he must find first-team football elsewhere if he is to keep his World Cup dream alive. The defender is out of contract at the end of the season, which means he can talk to clubs outside Scotland from January 1 about a summer free transfer under the Bosman Ruling. But he had made it clear that if Australia have booked their place in the finals by then he will ask to move straight away, with a loan switch another option. Vidmar, whose girl friend has just given birth to a daughter, told Sky Sports: "I want to be playing. I can't wait six or seven months for a Bosman because I need to be playing before the World Cup. I would be prepared to go anywhere. It was part of my tour, my adventure, to come to Europe to play for Rangers. I think it is a big squad and maybe he (manager Dick Advocaat) has to cut back on some players so I don't think he will stand in my way."

Sunday 4th November 2001

Advocaat happy with win Dick Advocaat reckoned his side could have hit eight against Aberdeen - and that was just in the first half. But the Dutchman was not too critical of his players for only ending up with a 2-0 win as this was another three points picked up in a week which had also included a midweek UEFA Cup victory in Moscow. Tore Andre Flo scored both to take his season's tally to 15 in all competitions and 12 in 11 Scottish Premier League matches. Advocaat said: "We could have scored more but I think that considering the week we have had, playing Livingston and travelling to Russia, they played excellent football in the first half. The only weakness was that we had to score more goals than just two. I think we created six, seven, eight open chances. In the second half there were not that many chances but still we played some good controlling football. I was quite pleased today with the way the team played." Asked about Flo's hot form, Advocaat added: "What can you say about Tore Andre Flo if you see his results scoring wise? The whole team is playing well and he takes his part in that. But two goals is good." Nerlinger out for season? Christian Nerlinger could be ruled out of action for the rest of the season with a mystery foot injury. The German, who joined the Light Blues in the summer, has returned to his home country for further examinations on his heel injury which has kept him out of action since the start of August. Nerlinger has played just three games for the club and Rangers manager Dick Advocaat admits the injury is baffling medical experts. Advocaat said: "He's gone back to Bayern Munich where he played for eight years as a youngster for treatment. The player thought it might be a good idea to let doctors who know his past history take a close look at his heel. The doctor at Bayern is very experienced, like ours, but it is proving quite difficult to find out what is wrong. They are still going to have to decide whether he needs an operation at some point. It is a concern because Nerlinger has already been out since the start of August and, even if we do find out now what we should do, it will still be January or February before he can play. Christian will back at the end of the week and we'll discuss it and then have to make some kind of decision."

Friday 2nd November 2001

Rangers face PSG in UEFA Cup - source Rangers will face Paris St Germain for the first time ever in their third round clash in the UEFA Cup. Dick Advocaat's men, fresh from that impressive 7-2 aggregate rout of Dynamo Moscow, were paired with the French side in Friday morning's draw in Geneva. But their record against French sides is split with three wins balanced by three defeats in knockout competition. However, their last competitive game against French opposition ended in disaster as Monaco ended hopes of qualifying for the second group phase of the Champions League. PSG, who boast the likes of Nicolas Anelka in their ranks, beat Rapid Vienna to reach round three. The first tie is at Ibrox on Thursday 22nd November with the return in Paris on Thursday 6th December. de Boer hopeful of Euro run Rangers have the quality to make it through their UEFA Cup fourth-round tie despite missing out on a seeded place, according to Ronald de Boer. The Ibrox side have struggled to make an impression on European football in recent years and have dropped out of the seeded clubs. But the Dutch midfielder, who scored the opener in last night's second-round tie against Dynamo Moscow, reckons this could be their year. He said: "We have a really strong side now and we are hoping that we can get through the next round. We know that we could draw a difficult opponent, but we want to go far. It has been a long time since Rangers were in Europe after Christmas, but we want to do that. We have a positive attitude and just have to hope that we get a reasonable draw for the next round."