Crowd may have impacted Rangers players, says Kenny Miller

The former Ibrox striker gives his thoughts on their defeat to Malmo

Author: Andrew MacleanPublished 11th Aug 2021
Last updated 13th Aug 2021

Former Rangers striker Kenny Miller says having a full crowd back at Ibrox could have contributed to their Malmo defeat.

Around 50,000 supporters watched on as Steven Gerrard's men squandered a lead to their ten-man opponents on Tuesday.

Two second-half goals from Antonio Colak subjected the Light Blues to a 2-1 defeat on the night and a 4-2 loss on aggregate.

Miller told Sky Sports: "With the fans behind them there was a really, really good energy at the start.

"It looked as if the players were responding.

"But sometimes when things get on top of you it's a hard place to play.

"When you've got fans there who are expectant and demanding, sometimes when things are going against you, it's hard to live up to that expectation.

Rangers now drop into the Europa League play-off round where they will take on either Kairat Almaty or Alashkert.

The defeat was their third consecutive loss of the season, but Miller thinks they'll bounce back from the poor run of form.

He said: "I think it'll be a blip.

"You don't become a bad team overnight and bad players overnight.

"It's about regrouping and they've got a chance again on Friday against Dunfermline in front of fans at Ibrox to halt this winless run.