Barry Ferguson told Vaclav Cerny he’s got work to do to get back into his side after the Czech was visibly frustrated at being substituted against Celtic.
Replaced by Hamza Igamane after 66 minutes of the 1-1 draw at Ibrox, TV pictures showed the winger thumping the dug-out after he took his seat.
Interim manager Ferguson claimed he had no issue with Cerny’s public display of emotion — but warned him that his performance had fallen short of what he’d demanded.
‘I’m the manager, I’ve got to make decisions,’ he stated. ‘And if I feel I need to make changes, I’ll make changes.
‘I have no issue with people being disappointed. I would rather they’re like that and walk off with a smile on their face.
‘He’ll need to come in next week and train really hard to try and get back into the starting XI next Sunday.’
Vaclav Cerny was taken off just over an hour into the derby draw at Ibrox
Cerny struggled to impose himself in match largely devoid of creative input
Ferguson was not impressed by the lack of quality on show from of a number of his players
Ferguson made no apology for withdrawing one of his side’s star men with the game in the balance.
‘In terms of Vaclav, he knows what I think,’ added Ferguson. ‘I think he’s a high-quality player.
‘He’s a match winner. He’s a game changer. Sometimes you’ve got to make decisions if you don’t think it’s going well.
‘But listen, he’s got a good attitude. He’ll be disappointed. He’ll be frustrated. Again, I don’t have any issue with that. He’ll be one of the first ones in on Tuesday morning. He’ll be on that training pitch and he’ll be giving his all.’
Ferguson was disappointed that his side couldn’t claim the win after being one goal up at the interval through Cyriel Dessers. Yet he maintained that he couldn’t have asked more from his players in terms of their effort.
‘Really happy with the commitment of the team,’ he added. ‘Obviously (I’m) disappointed with just getting a point. You want to come out of these games with three points. So that’s the thing that probably disappoints me.
‘I’m delighted with the commitment, the effort. Just that bit of quality in the final third when we break at times has to be better.
‘But, listen, they accept that, they understand that. That’s something that again we need to work hard on when we come back into training on Tuesday.’
Despite clocking up a fifth home game without a win since taking interim charge — and Rangers’ winless run at Ibrox extending to seven matches — Ferguson again expressed his desire to take the job on a permanent basis.
Acutely aware of the scale of the task awaiting the club’s prospective new American owners, though, the former skipper believes it’s imperative that a decision is made soon.
‘The changes are starting to happen and that’s a real positive in my eyes,’ he said.
‘Kevin (Thelwell) has come in as sporting director. I don’t know when he starts, maybe the middle of June or the start of July.
Surprise starter Bajrami and Celtic’s Greg Taylor get up close and personal as things heat up
‘But we need to get started because it’s a couple of weeks before the end of the season. Before you know it, you’re in the qualification games for the Champions League and then the season is upon you.
‘There’s a lot of work to be done. And the club need to make that decision about who’s going to be leading the team pretty soon.’
Pressed on whether he still believed he has a chance of getting the job, Ferguson added: ‘Yeah, of course. But that’s up to people above to decide.
‘Look, since I’ve come in here, there’s been a few bumps. But that does not scare me one single bit.
‘I’ve been through the doors now, I know what’s needed in terms of change. So, we just need to wait and see. But, as I said to you, it has to be a decision made quickly now because we’re coming to the end of the season.
Ferguson hinted that he still feels he can continue as Rangers boss, but wants clarity soon
‘You need to obviously start deciding what way you want to go heading into next season. Because this season has been dry in terms of trophies. This club needs to get back to challenging and winning trophies again.
‘Everybody’s got an opinion. I don’t care about people’s opinions. I know I can do the job. I know I’ve got a real good staff behind me.
‘I’ve been asked this question two or three weeks in a row. I think it’s clear. It doesn’t scare me one single bit.
‘I know there’s a hell of a lot of work to be done. But I think everybody knows that. And that’s a challenge that I would meet head on. And I know I would change it.’
