Ianis Hagi believes Rangers have to be more dynamic against Motherwell

Ianis Hagi believes Rangers have to be more dynamic against Motherwell on Sunday if they are to bounce back from their damaging defeat against St Mirren.

The 2-1 loss to the Buddies on Boxing Day left the Light Blues 12 points behind Premiership leaders Celtic and manager Philippe Clement raging at the below-standard performance in the first half where they fell behind to an Oisin Smyth penalty.

Half-time substitute Danilo levelled on the hour mark but a stunning strike from Saints substitute Caolan Boyd-Munce in added time moved Light Blues title hopes from unlikely to all but over.

Hagi, however, is looking no further than improvement at Fir Park.

The 26-year-old Romania international said: “We just need to be all-around more dynamic and understand that this time of the year is really important for this football club.

“Hopefully we can get the three points and move on.

“For us it’s just one game at a time. We understand the position we’re in in the league, we understand the points difference, but there is still plenty of football to be played.

“Hopefully games like the one against St Mirren will make us understand what it takes to win games at this time of the year and we move on.

“I think everybody knows it was a game of two different halves.

“At this time of the year when you play away from home, it’s not enough just to play one half with the standards we have at Rangers.

“We all know that so it wasn’t good enough.

“We dominated the full second half. We were more dynamic and we were showing more of our attributes, let’s say.

“We were enjoying the game and were unlucky not to get more than one goal, we had plenty of big chances to get the second and the third.

“But we don’t kill the game and that’s part of football.

“At the end of the day, these types of games turn out like that when you don’t kill the game. There’s always that last chance that the opposition has and this time we just weren’t ready enough to defend that last ball.”

Hagi knows Rangers have to deliver for the Gers fans who left Paisley dejected after another away disappointment.

The Light Blues have only won three of their eight away games in the league, which has proved costly.

The former Genk player said: “Yeah 100 per cent, that’s who we play for, for the fans, for the history of this club, and for protecting the image of this club.

“Obviously we’re not happy with how it ended the other night and hopefully we get back on track on Sunday.”

It will be the last game of 2024 for Rangers and Hagi, who, after returning from a loan spell at Alaves and playing in the Euros for Romania, was frozen out at the start of the season due to a contract issue that was eventually resolved, while also being left out of Clement’s European squad.

He said: “Yeah it’s been a roller coaster of emotions. Probably that’s the best sentence for it.

“But at the moment I’m really enjoying my football.

“I really feel like what’s ahead of me is really exciting and hopefully I can help the team every game and bring my qualities and my creativity on a daily basis for this football club.”