Derek Adams insists attack will be the best form of defence as Ross County go to Ibrox looking for a first ever win over Rangers
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Derek Adams believes attack will be the best form of defence at Ibrox for Ross County – who will be going in search of their first ever victory over Rangers.
The Staggies will be the fresher of the two sides, having seen their game against Hibernian last Saturday postponed due to a waterlogged pitch while the Glasgow giants not only took on Motherwell at the weekend, but have had to contend with the rigours of European football so far this season.
Adams acknowledges that County will be the underdogs going into the contest, not in the least because Rangers are unbeaten through their last 16 matches.
However, he is hoping that his players will be able to pose some problems for opposite number Philippe Clement's side too.
“It’s a very good game for us – we watched them against Motherwell during the week and they did very well," Adams reasoned.
“They are obviously looking forward to the Old Firm game which is after us and we’re looking at going there to try and cause Rangers some problems.
“We understand we have to deal with the problems they will cause us because they are one of the top teams in the league, but I’m sure if we can get about them, we can try to create some good opportunities in the game for us to take.
“You have to deal with the threat they have, but on the flipside, when we have possession of the ball we have got enough good players on the pitch to take control of the ball, create openings, run it forward, not leave too much space behind.
“When we’re attacking, we’re defending at the same time because of the quality that Rangers have.
“We are underdogs – we understand that – but we certainly have players in the team who will want to play in the big occasion and this game is one of the biggest they will come up against this season."
Adams will have to deal without Ross Callachan and Dylan Smith who are out injured, as is Will Nightingale. Another unnamed player is also due to be assessed after illness.
Before the County boss returned to Dingwall for a third spell, club chairman Roy MacGregor spoke of his desire to appoint someone who could help the Staggies take games to the biggest clubs in the country.
A trip to Rangers certainly qualifies as one of those moments, and while Adams has experience of beating Celtic – and earning a draw against Liverpool at Anfield while manager of Plymouth Argyle – he says MacGregor's comments do not put any extra pressure on him to win at Ibrox.
"We will always go and try to play in a way that is going to cause the opposition problems," Adams added.
“We understand the quality of player they have, there is no doubt about that.
“We are a team that need to go to Ibrox and get into positions where we are going to get opportunities on goal, and we have certainly got players in the team that are capable of doing that.
“It was a wee bit different (against Liverpool with Plymouth), because we did go to Liverpool and quite literally parked the bus that day and didn’t allow any space.
“We took them back to Home Park and we got another sell-out, so that was more about the cup game.
“On this game, everyone has us beaten to start with – that's just the nature of the game you go into.
“Any result we get is a surprise, so that allows us to go and play with a bit more freedom – but freedom meaning that when we’ve got the ball, to see how many opportunities we can get on the opposition. That’s what we’ve got to try and do."
