Connor Barron says Rangers must take the positives from their performance against Braga while acknowledging that results must now improve quickly if the club are to salvage their UEFA Europa League campaign.
Rangers were left frustrated on Thursday night after failing to secure the victory they felt their display deserved, with the match unfolding in testing conditions that made fluency difficult.
Yet for Barron, the takeaway was clear: the performance showed signs of a team beginning to evolve under the new management.
“We’re disappointed we didn’t get the three points,” the midfielder admitted.
“But I thought for large spells in the game we were good and dealt with the conditions really well.
“We showed something we haven’t shown in the previous Europa League games, so we can take confidence from that in terms of the performance.”
Confidence, however, does not mask the reality of the group table, Rangers have one point from five games and sit five off the top 24, and Barron is under no illusions about the work required to keep Rangers in the competition.
The Ibrox side now face a daunting task, likely needing to win their remaining three matches, away to Ferencváros, at home to Ludogorets, and then away to Porto, to retain any hope of progressing to the knockout stage.
Next up for Rangers is the visit of John McGlynn’s Falkirk to Ibrox with the Bairns having the opportunity to leapfrog the Gers in the table with a win.
“In terms of the result, we still need to work on that and we believe we can,” Barron said.
“Hopefully we can carry that performance into Sunday.
“We have to do that. The fixtures come thick and fast here but we’ve got to go and deal with that.
“We have to pick up maximum points on Sunday.”
Barron, who has looked increasingly assured in recent weeks, highlighted the impact the new manager has had on the squad’s approach and confidence.
“I’ve seen a lot of differences and improvements since the manager came in,” he continued.
“I feel like we’re playing with a lot more freedom and the boys are taking advantage of that.
“Obviously we have to pick up results and in the league we’ve done that. But Thursday was a disappointing one.”
The 23-year-old was encouraged by his own display against Braga but was quick to shift the focus back to collective standards and expectations.
“Personally, I felt like I did well, but the focus has to be on the team and getting three points. We didn’t do that and we’re disappointed with just one,” he said.
“We have to try and win the last three games now, 100 percent. The belief is in there to go and do it.
“That’s our focus - but we’ve got another game on Sunday.”