Derek Cornelius insists it is a "privilege" to try to turn around the "chaos" he has stepped into at Rangers. The Canada defender joined on loan from Marseille earlier this month and found himself at a club in crisis, with fans calling for head coach Russell Martin's sacking following a dismal start to the season. Cornelius came off the bench for his debut the 2-0 defeat by Hearts then made his first start in last weekend's 2-0 League Cup win over Hibs, where there were protests inside and outside the stadium against Martin and chief executive Patrick Stewart.
Derek Cornelius insists it is a "privilege" to try to turn around the "chaos" he has stepped into at Rangers.
The Canada defender joined on loan from Marseille earlier this month and found himself at a club in crisis, with fans calling for head coach Russell Martin's sacking following a dismal start to the season.
Cornelius came off the bench for his debut the 2-0 defeat by Hearts then made his first start in last weekend's 2-0 League Cup win over Hibs, where there were protests inside and outside the stadium against Martin and chief executive Patrick Stewart.
Prior to the Europa League opener against Genk at Ibrox on Thursday night, Cornelius said: "At clubs like Rangers, there's an expectation to win.
"And that extra pressure that we're getting from outside and maybe the chaos that I'm stepping into, I view it as a privilege and as a challenge to come here and try to help the situation.
"I don't think it impacted me negatively and I tried to look at the positives in the situation.
"Individually, I don't think it was so hard to block out the noise. When you sign up to be a professional footballer, it's kind of the stuff that can come with the job when things are not going well, you'll hear about it, you're going to feel some sort of pressure from outside.
"But at the end of the day it comes down to what's happening on the pitch.
"So for me, it hasn't really affected me that much. I had my job to do, my role to play, to just try and win games for Rangers."
Cornelius, 27, believes he is well equipped to cope with life at Rangers after spending a year with French giants Marseille.
He said: "Clubs like Marseille and Rangers, it's clubs with fan bases that live and die for the club and when you wear that badge and you represent clubs like that, you have a responsibility to really show on the pitch for them.
"So playing at Marseille last season gave me a little bit of experience of just what I'm getting into coming to Rangers."
Category: General Sports
