Mohamed Diomande admits feeling the pressure at Rangers as they bid to follow up their comeback cup win over Motherwell with Europa League success in Athens.
The Light Blues and their boss Philippe Clement were under huge scrutiny going into the Premier Sports Cup semi-final against the Steelmen at Hampden Park on Sunday after falling nine points behind William Hill Premiership leaders Celtic and Aberdeen.
Former Rangers midfielder Andy Halliday opened the scoring for Well in the 24th minute and the out-of-sorts Gers were loudly booed by their frustrated supporters at half time.
However, with Diomande on for the injured midfielder Tom Lawrence in the first half, the cup holders showed a marked improvement after the break and goals from striker Cyriel Dessers and attacker Nedim Bajrami set up a final against Celtic on December 15.
Clement’s side have to rest, recover and prepare for the Europa League game against Olympiacos on Thursday night where they will be looking to add to their six points from three games in the new-look tournament and Diomande is looking forward to the challenge after the crucial Well win.
The Ivory Coast midfielder said: “There’s been a lot of pressure. Obviously, we’re not going to hide it.
“And we’ve had poor performances lately but it’s all about bouncing back and I think we are on the right way to get to the level we expect of ourselves and the coaches, also in what the fans expect. So we’re getting there.
“Olympiacos is a big team. But we have also shown that we can win games away from home.
“And yeah, it’s going to be a tough game but we are going to try get the three points.
“Hard work, determination, and we are going to prepare ourselves to do what the coach says we should do to win the game.
“It’s confidence for us (Motherwell win), and even though it was hard on Sunday, I’m happy that we showed a winning mentality and we came back to win. And that’s a good way to go into a more difficult game.
“It’s going to be a good feeling, one of those experiences to play in a big stadium like Ibrox.
“We are all used to that, we are used to the noise and for me personally, it will be an amazing experience to play there.”
Diomande has not always started games in recent weeks but he insists he is “ready to step in and give my best for the team” in whatever role Clement wants him to play.
He said: “It is a healthy competition. We are all working hard in training and I’m giving my best to show the coach and to show my team-mates that I am ready for whatever minutes I’m going to get.
“We are a group, I’m part of the group, and I’m going to give everything I can when I get playing time.”
There are plenty of games to go before the final against Celtic next month but Diomande and his team-mates will be going all out to retain the trophy.
He said: “It’s going be a challenge but it’s a long way away so we can’t really focus on that now, but when it comes we are going to be ready to fight.
“We want to keep the trophy, that’s what you want to do.”
