CONNOR Goldson has urged his table-topping Rangers team mates to focus fully on their Rugby Park revenge mission ahead of their cinch Premiership meeting with fourth-placed Kilmarnock in Ayrshire on Wednesday night.
Excitement among fans of the Glasgow club increased on Saturday when their team thrashed Hearts 5-0 at Ibrox to move five points clear of their city rivals Celtic at the top of the league table.
The defending champions reduced their lead to two once again with a 3-1 victory over Motherwell at Fir Park yesterday – but their supporters remain convinced that Philippe Clement’s men are going to enjoy a successful 2023/24 campaign.
The on-form Viaplay Cup winners, who have now won their last 10 competitive matches, can potentially complete a world record-equalling eighth domestic treble this season.
READ MORE: Connor Goldson reveals areas Philippe Clement wants Rangers to improve
However, vice-captain Goldson, who made his 300th appearance for the Glasgow club at the weekend, is only concerned with recording a victory on the artificial pitch at Rugby Park in midweek and avenging the painful reverse they suffered on the opening day.
The English centre half and his team mates were booed off the park by furious Bears when they slumped to a 1-0 defeat to Derek McInnes’s side back in August when Michael Beale was still manager.
He is anticipating another challenging evening and is not giving any thought whatsoever to what Rangers can achieve this term.
“We’ve got a massive game on Wednesday at a tough place against a team that beat us earlier in the season 1-0, a team that’s beaten Celtic at home. We know how hard it is to go there so we just need to focus on that and hopefully get another three points.
“I’ve always been the same, I take it game by game, day by day and try to enjoy it and work as hard as I can and keep my body in the right place to be able to perform and perform at the highest level possible.”
READ MORE: Hearts goalkeeper makes Ibrox crowd admission after Rangers mauling
Goldson was pleased with the clean sheet that Rangers kept against Hearts on Saturday – but he was annoyed that goalkeeper Jack Butland was called on produce a few saves in the second half and is looking for an improved defensive performance in Ayrshire.
“Jack has been massive for us,” he said. “Again on Saturday he had another few big saves when we needed him. He has been huge. You can see that from the moments he has had through the season. But our job is to stop him making saves and in the last half an hour we probably gave him a bit too much to do.
“The manager gave us the day off after the Hearts win and he doesn’t give many. The game isn’t until Wednesday and I know he usually has two or three days before the game. So we are having Sunday off, we will enjoy it with our families and we will come back in on Monday raring to go.”
“It’s a nice occasion on Saturday, 300 on the board for this amazing football club. It was a lovely afternoon to round it off. Could I see it when I first came? Probably not. But now I’m here, I’m happy and I hope there are many more to come.”
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