Another mistake by club captain Lorenzo Amoruso cost Rangers victory at Dens Park at the weekend and added to the defensive crisis which is engulfing the club on the eve of their first Champions League group game.
Tomorrow night at Ibrox, Austrian champions Sturm Graz will test the rearguard which is the worst in the Premier League and, after this latest loss of valuable points, coach Dick Advocaat admitted his concern at the manner in which his players were giving goals away.
''Of course, it is a concern,'' he said. ''This was another poor result and it should not have been the case, because we were winning the game with 15 minutes to go. Amoruso then made the mistake but, if the goalkeeper had been a little bit sharper, the goal might have been prevented.
''I have spoken about this kind of thing, but it is there in the personality.
''I can say, 'don't do this any more,' but it still happens. We shall talk about it again. We must do that.''
Ominously, Amoruso's fellow countryman, one-time Juventus defender De Marchi Marco, who is now with Dundee, said: ''It is not his first mistake and it will not be his last. I spoke to him before the game, but not after.
''It wasn't the time to speak after something like that.''
He was impressed, however, by Michael Mols on his return to first-team action, saying: ''He is an unbelievable player. I have played against him before and I knew that I had to stay close to him all through the game if I was to stop him.
''I think he still needs to have more games before he is l00 per cent ready, but he looked good and moved well after being out for so long..''
Marco played in a UEFA Cup-winning team with Juventus and, in an honest assessment of the current form of the Scottish champions, he mused: ''I am playing in Scotland now and I would like to see Rangers do well, and maybe they can. However, I do not see them as being of the same standard as say Lazio or Manchester United. They're not up there with that kind of team.''
There is no immediate rescue for Advocaat and his defence, either, as Craig Moore, their most reliable back player last season, will be out for another ''three, four, or maybe five weeks'', according to the Dutchman.
However, he was pleased that Arthur Numan and Mols had come through another testing time and both could be asked to play tomorrow. Said Advocaat: ''We shall check on them for reaction, but they looked okay after the game.''
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