Let it all shout: Graeme Murty says Rangers were inspired by interval aggro

GRAEME MURTY praised his players for using a half-time shouting match to improve their performance against Celtic.

The Rangers boss now wants his men to use the Old Firm draw as a fresh start under his leadership.

Murty, who remains unbeaten at Parkhead, was delighted by the way the Light Blues upped their performance after the break.

He said: “It was great at half-time because there were some frank exchanges of view among the players to try and improve.

“In the heat of the moment it gets a bit fraught and frantic in the changing room.

“We let the guys get it out and then give them a really good solution.

“Once they’ve had their say, we control it again.

“I made sure that when they walked out on to the pitch no negativity would be tolerated.

“Nobody was negative in body language or to one another.

“We only had to be positive and I thought in the second half we were really positive.

“That energy took them out into the second half.

“From the whistle, they showed good concentration, good intensity, good focus and not a little ability, which is vital for a club like ours.

“We were brave enough to play at the right times and some of the players gave outstanding performances.

“As Celtic grew in momentum they caused us different problems and moved people around, which is going to happen because they’re a really good team.

“I thought with Alfredo Morelos’ header, he had missed it but it was a really good save By Craig Gordon. He has a habit of doing that against us.”

Murty has been on a real rollercoaster of results during his time in charge of Rangers.

There have been defeats at the hands of Hamilton, Dundee and, last weekend, Kilmarnock.

He hopes this battling draw against Celtic will act as an inspiration for his players.

Murty takes his squad to the USA to participate in the Florida Cup during January and it’s likely he will be moving a few players in and out.

Most of the players, however, will be staying and their boss wants this level of performance to act as a benchmark for the rest of the campaign.

He went on: “You have to accept what the players give you and this time they gave me a top notch level of concentration, focus and intensity.

“We have to use that as fuel to move us forward from here.

“We can’t take a backward step because, as I’ve told them, when I walked out of Celtic Park last time it was with a sense of a job well done.

“I sit here now with a real sense of a job and a journey that we’re just starting out on.

“We have to use that to move forward and if we do, this game will have served a good purpose beyond just getting a point.

“The players were walking off the pitch a little bit elated because of the manner of the performance and we know we could have won it.”

Murty, who is aiming to bring in Jimmy Nicholl as his assistant, was well served by youngsters David Bates and Ross McRorie, but he was satisfied with everyone in light blue.

He said: “I trust them all. I believe in them all. I have sat after worse results and said the same.

“The players know I trust them. So when you have to throw someone like David Bates on, you know he is not going to let you down.

“He’ll give you everything and Ross is the same.”

Murty was unsure about the nature of the injury sustained by Bruno Alves.

He said: “He is in a lot of pain. He is on crutches and wearing a boot. It is far too soon to assess but he is in a lot of discomfort.

“It’s either his calf or his ankle.”