Rangers boss Steven Gerrard has singled out goalkeeper Wes Foderingham for his performance in their 1-1 draw v Kilmarnock on Wednesday, claiming he saved them from a loss.
The Gers were looking to bounce back from their Betfred Cup semi-final defeat by Aberdeen at the weekend and took the lead through Alfredo Morelos, but Greg Stewart quickly equalised before Killie pushed for a winner late on.
Gerrard criticised many of his players after the game, claiming they need to take some responsibility for their lacklustre performances, but he did rave about Foderingham after his display between the sticks.
As quoted by the Daily Record, he said: “Wes stopped us from actually dropping three points with a terrific save at the end. He has been outstanding in training the last two or three weeks.
“Allan has had a small problem on the right side of his back and I actually thought our reaction from Sunday would allow me to change the keeper, but there are no fingers to be pointed at Wes.
“He could have done nothing at the first goal where we didn’t defend well enough. We were soft, missed the header and let a left-footer come back on his strong foot. There are other people to point fingers at for that goal. Because of Wes, we didn’t lose the game at the very end.”
OPINION
You can tell that Gerrard is growing frustrated with his team’s performances over the past couple of weeks, so for him to single out Foderingham for praise shows how impressed he was with his display. Rangers were simply not good enough on Wednesday, and as Gerrard points out, would most definitely have lost if it weren’t for Foderingham. It was a surprisingly flat performance considering the fact that Gerrard had revealed the players had responded really well to the weekend loss in training. Morelos’ early goal possibly counted against them, with the Light Blues maybe taking their foot off the gas a little and paying with the equaliser. Despite all the early season promise the season is looking a tougher task every week for Gerrard, with no cup final coming up and his team lying in a distant fourth in the league table. It will take a huge effort to get anywhere close to the title, and the Scottish Cup may well be his best chance of success this term.