Cuellar wants to stay at Ibrox and win trophies

Defender Weir insists light blues must now concentrate on spl title race

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CUP REFLECTIONS: Rangers manager Walter Smith in pensive mood on board the team coach at Glasgow Airport yesterday

Rangers defender Carlos Cuellar says the Uefa Cup final defeat by Zenit St Petersburg at the City of Manchester Stadium has only increased his determination to remain at Ibrox.

The 26-year-old Spaniard, voted player of the year by the Scottish Football Writers’ Association, has been linked with a move to the English Premier League with Newcastle United.

Geordies manager Kevin Keegan would not have been the only manager impressed by Cuellar’s typically tenacious performance against the Russian club.

The former Osasuna player was solid at the heart of the Rangers defence although he could not prevent a more technically-gifted Zenit side capturing its first European trophy through second-half goals by Igor Denisov and Konstantin Zyrianov.

However, Cuellar shrugged off his disappointment at losing out on the opportunity to win four trophies for the Light Blues this season and reiterated his desire to stay in Glasgow.

He said: “It was disappointing but will not affect my future.

“I have a contract for another three years and I am very happy with that. I am playing at one of the biggest clubs in the country and we have a very good team.

“I can play in the Champions League every year, I have the chance of winning the league and also winning the other Scottish trophies.

“Zenit deserved to beat us. We put in a good performance but they were better than us, they had more possession and they took their chances.

“Now we have to change our mentality. We have lost the Uefa Cup but now we have to win the SPL and the Scottish Cup.

“We have two games more than Celtic to play so we can do it even though we have three difficult games coming up in a short period of time.

“The important thing is we have to be ready for Motherwell at the weekend.”

Cuellar’s central defensive partner David Weir, whose contract is up at the end of the season, claimed it was too early to discuss his future.

The 38-year-old, who along with Cuellar has provided the bedrock for the Light Blues’ European run as well as their domestic success this season, insists the Ibrox club must quickly re-focus on the SPL title race.

He said: “We wanted to bring the trophy back so it was obviously a disappointing result.

“I thought we were the better side in the second half but football can be a cruel game and there is a fine line between winning and losing at this level.

“Zenit took their chances and so all credit to them for that.

“We have to try to use the defeat as a positive and move on. “If we feel sorry for ourselves then we are in trouble.”