You are in > manchester.com  > News > Rangers lacked creativity, Smith admits

General Sport

Rangers lacked creativity, Smith admits

15/05/2008

Rangers manager Walter Smith has blamed a lack of a creative spark for his side's Uefa Cup final defeat to Zenit St Petersburg.

Goals from Igor Denisov and Konstantin Zyryanov ensured the Scottish side went down 2-0 in the final at the City of Manchester Stadium.

But Smith pointed to Zenit winger Andrei Arshavan as the difference between the sides after he was given the man-of-the-match award after the final whistle.

"I think when you look at the player that was named man-of-the-match we have maybe missed a bit of that throughout the season," he told the Rangers website.

"When I say that I mean someone who can do something a wee bit different.

"We have a team that has worked extremely hard and have a great work ethic and this has taken them a long way.

"But in some games this season we have lacked a player with perhaps a bit more creativity."

Smith admitted he is looking to bring in one or two players over the summer to address this problem.

But he also reserved special praise for his current crop of players, saying their work rate and commitment had been better than any other side in Europe in steering them to a major final.

"I have to stress that I could not ask any more of our players, they have been great," he added.

"And I would also like to thank our unbelievable fans for the support they have given us throughout our European run this season."