THERE must be times when Paul Gascoigne does not know which way to

turn. Whatever he does or says becomes public knowledge either

immediately or gradually through the rumour factory which drip feeds the

gossips among us.

However, if he wishes to ease his load then all he has to do is

perform in Rangers' midfield. Perform like the footballer Rangers

thought they were buying, that is.

Gascoigne has played only spasmodically and has much more to give. He

must have, otherwise Terry Venables would not have listed him yesterday

in the England squad for next week's match against Switzerland.

No-one can hope to understand what goes on inside Gascoigne's head,

but when he is fully focused on his work, he becomes the player Walter

Smith wants to see, and if the Englishman is in the mood this evening,

Kilmarnock will have problems trying to subdue him and Rangers at Rugby

Park.

Yet, lately it has looked as though he is becoming more sluggish in

his work rather than sharper, although on Saturday a thigh injury

prevented him from playing against Falkirk, who play at Pittodrie

tonight.

He has recovered quickly and although Venables has the right to call

him to the English gathering on Saturday, he will play against Aberdeen

at Ibrox before travelling south, where the spotlight will fall on him

once again.

There will be no escape, so the sooner Gascoigne shuts everything out

and just plays the better.

While he has recovered, another midfield player, Stuart McCall, has

been injured again. He took a blow against Falkirk and aggravated the

rib-muscle problem which kept him out prior to that match, but Smith is

confident the player will be fit in time to play against Aberdeen.

''It is important for us to win both these matches to keep the

momentum in the league championship going,'' said Smith. ''Kilmarnock

had a good result on Saturday and they always compete well against us.

We will have to meet the challenge and make sure we stay at the top of

the division.''

Smith had hoped to sign Morton's Derek McInnes by now, but because of

the intricacies in the midfield player's contract, the deal continues to

be delayed. The signing could be completed today or later in the week,

but no-one can say for definite until Morton honour the terms of sale

which they agreed to with McInnes.

Smith is willing to let the matter run its course, and as more of his

players begin to emerge from periods of inactivity caused by injuries,

he can afford to wait. ''Players are returning and that might give me a

chance to spell some people who found that they were recovering from

injuries and having to play sometimes three times in little more than a

week,'' Smith said.

Andy Goram and Craig Moore are expected to be fit to play against

Aberdeen and Brian Laudrup and David Robertson could be ready in time to

play against Celtic next weekend.

Alex Totten will have to decide between the experience of veteran

keeper Bobby Geddes or the youthful Colin Meldrum because of the

automatic, one-match suspension imposed on Dragoje Lekovic, sent off on

Saturday against Raith Rovers. Meldrum, a 19-year-old former Scotland

youth cap, played four times in the first team last season.

''Obviously Bobby, who has played for us already this season, has all

the experience, but Colin is a great prospect,'' said Kilmarnock manager

Alex Totten.

The Rugby Park side have been lifted by recent performances after a

dreadful few months, and Totten added: ''It's a very happy dressing room

and everyone is looking forward to playing against Rangers.

''There will be a big crowd and the players can only respond well to

the kind of atmosphere which will be generated. Also, after having moved

up the division into sixth place, we have to go into this game with

confidence.''

The manager hopes to be able to include Colin McKee (ankle), Billy

Findlay (knee), and Mark Roberts (back) in his plans as all three appear

to have recovered, but Steve Maskrey, who has damaged a knee, has been

unable to train and will be left out.

The Dons, beaten 2-1 by Hibernian on Saturday, will have to do much

more if they want to satisfy their manager, Roy Aitken, who is a hard

taskmaster. ''I am looking for that bit extra from the players to turn

things around,'' he said before tonight's match against Falkirk.

''Falkirk are in good hands with people like John Lambie and Gerry

Collins in charge. Their team may be sitting at the bottom of the

division, but they know what it takes to pick up points.''

Scott Booth and Stewart McKimmie will be given fitness tests sometime

today, but Aitken is confident at least one of them will play. If Booth

is out, Duncan Shearer will start in only his second match of the

current campaign.

Teenager Michael Craig has been promoted to the first-team squad

because of his form since being signed from Celtic.