Rangers boss Graeme Murty can’t afford to always be Mr Nice Guy

GRAEME MURTY has made it clear he can’t afford to always take the nice-guy approach.

The Rangers boss has been praised by his players for being an excellent communicator. It’s something he prides himself on, but he knows that alone won’t lead to him remaining as manager on a long-term basis.

Murty showed his players a video nasty the other day – footage of November’s defeat by Hamilton Accies at Ibrox.

The 43-year-old wants his men to show they have the steel to avoid another loss when they perform on Hamilton’s unforgiving plastic pitch today.

He said: “As nice a guy as I am, and as nice a place as this is to work, the job is about winning.

“I’ve said to the players that all the nice football in the world is fine, but sometimes you have to win 1-0 and it has to be horrible, scruffy and nasty.

“You have to show resilience because it’s all about results.

“I want to play in a certain way, I want to be inclusive, I want the atmosphere to be positive and vibrant, but I’m a winner as well.

“I want to win. I want to make it impossible for people to ignore me and my team.

“You do that by winning, and you sometimes do that by being steely-eyed and a bit nasty.”

Murty admits his video analysis of the Accies’ defeat could have been titled “The Greg Docherty Show”. He’s delighted the midfielder will be wearing the colours of Rangers this afternoon.

While 21-year-old Docherty is still in the early stages of his career, a man nearing the end of his time in football is looking for game time.

Bruno Alves is fit again and Murty says the 36-year-old Portugal defender can still make a valuable contribution.

He said: “Bruno could be a big player between now and the rest of the season.

“We know his characteristics and we will be pushed with a lot of games coming up.

“We will need big people putting in big performances.

“It’s not just one guy. I want to throw the challenge down to all of them.

“Bruno has a World Cup to play for, but he’s not the only one.”