John Souttar is adamant that Rangers can still win the title despite their misguided trip to Dundee because they weren’t imprisoned.
It’s possible that Ibrox officials are furious that the Dens team may face penalty for the second time around for Wednesday’s cancelled match. However, Souttar claims that Philippe Clement is a big pro at encouraging teamwork. Even though there was no football played, the camaraderie of an away day in St Andrews may have arrived at a crucial time in their pursuit of the Premiership title.
“It’s not like we were going up there and staying in a prison,” the defender stated prior to an even longer travel to Dingwall, where they will meet Ross County this weekend. I won’t gripe about going up there and hanging out with the boys for the day because we stayed in a really lovely hotel. It’s not like we went up there and spent the time by ourselves with everyone furious over the game being canceled because we’re a close-knit group.
We went up there and had a great time because we are all close. It also serves as a means of connection. In any case, we wouldn’t have started working on the Ross County game until Thursday. I would rather be cheerful and concentrate on that than sit here and be pessimistic about everything.
“On vacations, people engage in varying activities. Some of us go out for coffee, some of us play cards, and some of us use the Playstation. It’s excellent. All of the males and the staff are together when you go on a hotel stay.
Everyone gets together because of it. And I believe that’s crucial in order to succeed. We can learn something from the experience of being out there.
The manager is very aware of that. Our personnel is excellent. Such visits are always worthwhile because everyone is close. What transpired and the way it was are far from ideal. However, I doubt that many boys were acting out. We had no choice but to live with it as it was.
For Southtar, who has overcome three Achilles ruptures and a catastrophic ankle ailment to stand on the verge of something genuinely great with club and country over the coming months, dealing with setbacks is nothing new.
In addition to a potential Treble and his first Premiership title, he is a surefire pick for the Scotland team that will compete in the Euros in Germany this summer.
With the perseverance the 27-year-old has showed over the years, few would say he doesn’t deserve all that. However, Souttar remarked, “I believe you should remain on the ground.” As with everything in life, looking too far ahead can cause distraction and divert your attention from the present moment.
“I think that dealing with my ailments has taught me to live each day as it comes.” In football, I also don’t take any day for granted since you never know what’s going to happen next. It gets confusing to try to compute things mentally and overthink things.
“The manager talked to us about forgetting everything else as soon as he walked in. He wished for us to concentrate on each practice and each game. We’ll be in a good situation if you do that, he said, and we are now in a far better position than we were before he arrived. Therefore, there’s no need for us to alter right now.
Souttar’s 36 club appearances this season, which matches his previous best from six years ago at Tynecastle, would come if he is selected to start at Dingwall tomorrow. Souttar was previously a stopper for Hearts and Dundee United.
It’s a strong indication that the former Hearts and Dundee United stopper is nearing his best.
I’d say so, he said. Anyhow, consistently. I think this is almost how many games I have played in a season.
“It’s definitely not the most consistently I’ve played in my career, but it’s close.”
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