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Rangers boss: forget Euro misery and complete the treble

May 15th, 2008

Walter Smith has urged his Rangers players to forget the disappointment of their UEFA Cup final defeat here on Wednesday and concentrate on completing the domestic treble that remains in their grasp. Rangers can add the Scottish Premier League and Scottish Cup titles to the League Cup they have already secured this season and Smith said his squad had to retain their focus for the remaining four matches of the campaign.

“We are disappointed to lose a final at the end of what has been a very long campaign for us,” Smith said after seeing his side beaten 2-0 by Zenit St Petersburg, whose technical superiority finally yielded two goals in the final 20 minutes of Wednesday’s final at the City of Manchester stadium. “Obviously it will be difficult to judge how much the disappointment takes out of the players. But what is at stake for them is that we have an opportunity with four games to go to win two trophies so I would hope that we can overcome the disappointment we have suffered. “If we win our next three games in the SPL and become champions we will be happy.”

Rangers’ cause was not helped by the refusal of SPL bosses to extend the season, which would have enabled Smith’s men to avoid playing last weekend, as Zenit were able to do. But Smith refused to blame the intense end-of-season schedule for his side’s wilting at the end of what was their 64th match of a campaign that started in late July last year.

“I don’t think that had any influence on the result,” Smith said. “The players tonight were ready to play and we were just coming into the match when they scored and that first goal changed the whole complexion of the game.”

Rangers’ hopes of securing a first European trophy in 36 years were crushed 18 minutes from time, when midfielder Igor Denisov combined smoothly with man-of-the-match Andrei Arshavin before slotting home for the Russian champions. Konstantin Zyrianov added a close-range second in stoppage time to make sure Zenit emulated the achievement of 2005 winners CSKA Moscow and condemned the tens of thousands of Rangers supporters who had descended on Manchester to a miserable journey back to Scotland.

Arshavin, who is being tipped as a potential star of Euro 2008, was also involved in the build-up to the second goal and Smith acknowledged that a player of his guile was something Rangers lacked.

“I think we have missed a little bit of that all through the year — somebody who can do something a little bit different. We have a good work ethic in this team and it has taken them a long way but in a few games we have lacked someone to give us a little bit more creativity. “I don’t think anyone, myself or the players, thought this season would lead to a European final. “So you have to give them credit for what they have achieved against a lot of good European sides.”

Smith believes Zenit are good enough to go on to make an impact in the Champions League next season, although Advocaat admitted he could face a battle to keep his squad together. “I have no doubt that some players will go and then you have to start again. It is always the problem with success. We already sold Martin Skrtl to Liverpool but you have to keep players like that if you want to become even better. “It is not only Arshavin we have to keep. There are other players who are very important to us. We have to try to keep this team together and add three or four players so that we can rotate. At the moment it is always the same 12 to 14 players who play but to go to the next level you need more than that.”

Zenit were denied a blatant penalty on the stroke of half-time, when Kirk Broadfoot handled in the area, but overall Rangers did a good job of containing Zenit until 18 minutes from the end. Smith’s men, who were showing signs of fatigue, were partly to blame for their own downfall having lost possession from their own throw on the left. The ball was quickly worked forward by the Russians and Denisov played a deft one-two with Arshavin before sliding the ball past Neal Alexander and Zyrianov wrapped things up in stoppage time.

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Entry Filed under: European Football,Sports News & Results