IBROX MEN HURTING AFTER CELTIC LOSS, SAYS INVERNESS MANAGER

Brewster wary of wounded Rangers

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Inverness manager Craig Brewster admits a Rangers side smarting from an Old Firm defeat is hardly an ideal opponent if your team has just lost five matches in a row.

Brewster’s men have endured a miserable first half of the Premier League season and find themselves joint bottom of the table, having amassed only 17 points from their first 20 games.

The Highlanders will be massive underdogs on Sunday when they entertain a team looking to bounce back from last weekend’s 1-0 defeat to Celtic.

Inverness have won only once in 10 attempts at home this season and Brewster knows his players face a real test of character if they are going to get anything against Walter Smith’s men this weekend. He said: “We know Rangers will be hurting from the Celtic defeat but they are dangerous whenever you play them.

“They have got players who can really hurt you if you give them time and space to play. But we will only be focusing on ourselves and we need our influential players to start performing for us again.

“Inverness have generally done quite well against Rangers here and we will be looking to do well again on Sunday.”

Brewster insists the only way his players will drag themselves away from the wrong end of the table is by sticking together.

He said: “We are in a tough position, but we have to remain positive, stay focused and keep working hard for each other.

“It is important we start positively against Rangers and get the crowd behind us. We need to make sure we don’t concede an early goal and then build on it from there.”

Meanwhile, the Caley Thistle manager believes Ian Black can still play a huge part in the club’s quest for SPL survival.

The 23-year-old has signed a pre-contract agreement to join Hearts at the end of the season but Brewster reckons the midfielder can still play a pivotal role in steering the club away from the relegation zone before leaving the Caledonian Stadium in the summer.

“Players move on but, in the meantime, Ian is a Caley Thistle player,” said Brewster.

“The club still pay his wages, so he has to keep doing his best for Inverness and I’m sure he will.”