Nicolas Raskin admitted Rangers have reached a moment of uncomfortable truth following their defeat at Tynecastle, describing the setback as a “reality check” as pressure mounts on the club’s fading title hopes.
Speaking candidly after the match, Raskin did not shy away from the scale of Rangers problems, acknowledging that frustration is widespread within the dressing room.
While resisting calls to abandon belief entirely, the Belgian midfielder was clear that standards have slipped and must improve rapidly.
“We’re all disappointed, we’re all very frustrated,” Raskin said.
“Not everything is to throw away, but we need to be honest and at the moment we’ve been not good enough.”
Rangers latest defeat leaves them twelve points behind league leaders Heart of Midlothian, six behind Celtic and sitting fourth in the table, behind Motherwell on goal difference despite holding a game in hand.
For Raskin, the concern lies less in long-term structure and more in decisive lapses during key moments.
“In the big games, we maybe have a couple of minutes where we don’t really know what happened,” he explained.
“Five minutes in the first half and we conceded two goals.
“That’s the thing we need to improve.”
Those brief collapses, rather than sustained pressure, have repeatedly undermined Rangers efforts this season.
Raskin stressed that preparation has not been the issue, pointing to a clear game plan that unravelled once Hearts struck.
“We had the plan, we prepared it well. Before the goals we were not really in danger,” he said.
“Then you concede a cheap goal and you need to change everything.”
Despite the growing gap at the top, Raskin was keen to reaffirm his belief in the direction of travel under the head coach, insisting one poor performance should not derail the broader project.
“Nothing has changed just because we had a bad performance today,” he said.
“We’ve had some good games in the league but today was not good enough.”
Emotionally, the midfielder admitted the situation is taking its toll - not only on players, but on supporters who continue to travel and back the team.
“Everyone in the dressing room is very hurt,” Raskin added.
“It’s very difficult for our fans too. They deserve better.”
Looking ahead, Raskin accepted that Rangers now have virtually no margin for error.
“We need to win every game now,” he said.
“Football is unpredictable, but if we keep dropping points, we don’t have room for error.”