MARK Warburton last night insisted how Rangers perform against the bottom six Ladbrokes Premiership teams this season will be every bit as important as their matches against the leading clubs.
The Ibrox club have failed to beat Aberdeen, Celtic and Hearts – the top three sides in the top flight last season - so far during the 2016/17 campaign.
The Championship winners will be hoping to end their disappointing run when they take on Aberdeen for the first time in Govan in nearly four years this afternoon.
However, Warburton has downplayed the significance of their meetings with the Pittodrie, Parkhead and Tynecastle clubs to their bid to finish as runners-up and claim a Europa League spot.
“It is a very, very tight league,” he said. “Everyone says that (Rangers haven’t done well against the top three clubs), but at the same time you have to beat the bottom teams as well.
“If you beat us, then lose your next two games against teams in the bottom three, it is irrelevant.
“The fact we went into Wednesday night’s game in second place suggests that, while we have lost to Celtic and Aberdeen, we have done alright against other teams.
“So it’s about balance over the course of the season. If you beat all the teams in the bottom six three times, it’s 54 points. That’s up for grabs (before the split). It works both ways.”
Meanwhile, Warburton has urged Rangers to protect their impressive unbeaten record at Ibrox when they play Aberdeen this afternoon.
The Glasgow club haven’t lost a single league game at home since the former Brentford manager took over last summer.
But the Englishman understands his side will have to defend far better than they did in the 2-0 defeat to Hearts at Tynecastle on Wednesday night when they gifted two goals to Robbie Muirhead.
He has also called on his players to keep cool heads in what is sure to be a highly-charged encounter with Derek McInnes’s side.
“We lost three valuable points on Wednesday, regardless of where the game was played, but we have a good home record,” he said. “We’ve only lost once in the 18 months we’ve been here, to St Johnstone in the League Cup.
“That’s not a bad record for 18 months - I think it’s the best since 2001 for Rangers at home. We have to recognise that and hopefully keep on extending it. When we have a packed out Ibrox, we have to deliver performances.
“We weren’t good enough at Tynecastle. There no point in saying we could have done this or that - the bottom line is we didn’t. We didn’t get started and we never moved the ball as we can do and we paid the price for it.
“We conceded two really sloppy goals. Up until the first goal, I thought it was two sides can-celling each other out. It was a bit neutral and the stats have confirmed that. But they were really poor goals to give away and we paid the price.
“We have to be balanced and recognise that it can be a heated game, but you need a bit of that ice water in your veins as well. Whatever job you do, it’s getting the balance right.
“If emotions take over, you are never going to produce your best performance but you need that emotion in the first place, just to get in the right frame of mind.”
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