Advocaat warns Le Guen that Rangers will be no bed of roses

ROB ROBERTSON May 08 2006

Dick Advocaat has told Paul Le Guen to brace himself for a relentless schedule when he takes over at Ibrox today.

Advocaat – Rangers' manager between 1998 and 2001 – said: "He will find it quite difficult at such a big club as Rangers– there is a lot of pressure on you every day. There is no time to relax, but that's what managers who work at the top level want."

Advocaat, who will take charge of South Korea at the World Cup in Germany this summer, was instrumental in appointing McLeish as his successor and empathised with the outgoing Ibrox manager. "Alex gave his heart to the club and will be sorry to go, just as I was," he said. "He will feel he is leaving a great club, that's certainly the way I felt when I left.

"He knew he would be leaving after the game against Hearts, so he has been preparing but I have no doubt he will move on to a big job with a good club."

Meanwhile, Valdas Ivanauskas, the interim manager of Hearts, said some of the fringe players who faced Rangers yesterday could have played their way into his Tennent's Scottish Cup final squad.

Ivanauskas made nine changes to the team that beat Aberdeen last week to secure second in the league and a place in the Champions League qualifying draw.

Calum Elliot and Nerijus Barasa put in good shifts but one player who appeared not to enhance his chances was Julien Brellier, the French midfielder who Ivanauskas said had performed below par before he was substituted.

"A lot of players did well but I had big problems with others," said Ivanauskas. "They had the chance against Rangers to show they should be included in the cup final on Saturday. Julien was okay but he can play better."

Hearts supporters opened newspapers in their section of the stand and started reading them when the match began to show they were not bothered about the result, but Ivanauskas took a more serious approach and was disappointed his makeshift side had not come closer to beating Rangers.

"To lose the game was not good," said Ivanauskas. "I was not happy about the way we played in the first half but, in the second, we did a bit better and had a few chances.

"It has been a big season for us but this was not the result we wanted the week before the cup final. We now need to get ready for that and finish the season well."

Rudi Skacel, the Hearts midfielder, was given the captain's armband against Rangers despite the fact his future at the club remains uncertain.

"The question about my future is difficult for me as people keeping asking me about it," said Skacel, "but I am happy in Edinburgh and we have a good dressing room – I have a lot of friends at the club.

"However, one day, I would like to play in the Premiership as it is the best league of all. I hope that will happen. It could be this year, maybe more, but I'd definitely like to play there."

Taken from the Herald