TIME TO GET NASTY GERS

Barry ready to counter dark arts

- Andy Newport

NICE guys come last ... or in Rangers’ case, second. Repeatedly.

Interim Ibrox gaffer Barry Ferguson reckons the squad of domestic no-hopers he inherited from Philippe Clement are all a bit too squeaky clean for his liking.

They certainly lack the nasty streak the former skipper was famed for during his playing days.

Fergie was the type who'd be just as likely to fire one into the top corner as he would be to stick an opponent into the stand.

That's the sort of thing you can get away with amid the chaos and clatter of Scottish football.

In Europe, however, you'll find the specialists in the dark arts operate with a less obvious, more cerebral touch.

And there’s been few better at it down the years than the man Ferguson will be standing opposite in the dugout tonight.

There’s no denying Jose Mourinho, right, has over stepped the line at times. Remember that fishhook finger he planted in the gub of Barcelona rival Tito Vilanova during an El Classico bust up?

But this is a man who has long possessed a slight of hand when it comes to bending the rules.