Derek McInnes insists he will get to where he wants to go with Rangers despite the 2-1 defeat by Hibernian leaving him winless in his first three games as Gers boss.
A 1-1 William Hill Premiership draw at Dundee United and a 2-1 Europa League qualifying defeat by Jagiellonia Bialystok preceded his first game in charge at Ibrox, where the visitors took the lead in the 12th minute with a Josh Campbell penalty.
Gers forward Youssef Chermiti, subject to a failed bid by Galatasaray for a reported club-record fee of £22million, was taken away on a stretcher after picking up an impact injury.
Rangers equalised when Hibs defender Miguel Chaiwa turned the ball into his own net but in the third minute of added time, substitute Callum Wright’s deflected shot handed the Hibees a stunning winner.
Celtic, who have won 14 of the last 15 titles, and St Mirren are both on six points from two league games, while Rangers are five points behind and those fans who stayed until the end vented their displeasure.
“I understand the frustration, I share the frustration,” said McInnes, who revealed Chermiti left Ibrox with his “knee in a brace” and will have a scan on Monday.
“It’s 15 years of frustration here at this club. Nobody knows that more than me. We won one title (during Covid times). Fans didn’t even get to see the title win. So every Rangers team is a by-product of that frustration.
“So the Rangers fans just want to see their team winning and so do I. And we will get there. I’m not going to ask the fans for more patience because I think the Rangers fans have been patient enough.
“So it’s up to us to give them a winning team more often than not. And we will get there. We could do with some help.
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“And we’re working hard to try and get some bodies in. And we could do with a wee bit more luck than we got today, certainly.”
McInnes welcomed Rangers rejecting the huge bid for Chermiti and will wait to ascertain the extent of his injury. He said: “The bid was rejected, which we are delighted about. We know it’s a big number that came in for him.
“But we have got plans for Youssef to be with us this season and be part of something. Disappointed for the big fella that he has to come off on a stretcher. I thought he was looking bright and running gaps.
“He played with a bit of purpose. And there’s no doubt we missed that. But he’s left in a boot and his knee in a brace. And we’ll get him scanned tomorrow.
“So, we don’t want people to speculate. But hopefully we’ll get some luck on the scan tomorrow, and he can be back in a Rangers shirt before too long.”
It was the first time that Hibs had won at Ibrox in three successive seasons. Boss David Gray said: “A lot of people speak about history and usually it’s because something’s not been done for a very long time and it’s a negative thing.
“I’ve always tried to challenge the group to recreate our own history. That’s certainly something I spoke about today.
“I actually asked the group, when do you think the last time it’s been done? Nobody knew the answer clearly, but it’s because it’s never been done before.
“It shows you how good an achievement it is. At times we had to ride our luck, we had to go under immense pressure, but the belief was there and I’m delighted for them because they deserve it.”
