Jack Butland has confessed to feeling the pressure of playing for Rangers in an interview conducted ahead of being dropped by Barry Ferguson against Athletic Bilbao
Jack Butland opened up on the pressure of playing for Rangers in a prophetic moment ahead of being dropped by Barry Ferguson.
The former England shot-stopper was benched in favour of Liam Kelly for the Europa League quarter-final first leg against Athletic Bilbao on Thursday following a series of clangers. Butland was the hero against Fenerbahce last month after making two crucial penalty saves at Ibrox.
However, several high-profile gaffes since then in the Premiership have seen his Gers future thrown into doubt. The 32-year-old admitted to sometimes feeling the weight of playing for Rangers during an appearance on the ‘Fozcast’ podcast.
Butland told ex-Manchester United keeper Ben Foster how it feels like “the end of the world” when they lose a game, leading to plans with friends being cancelled and also impacting his family.
He said: “Down in England, you can be at teams where things will go against you. You can have a bad day and you can lose but you can go back to normality after it. Here, it’s the end of the world, and you feel it.
“When you’ve been up here for long enough, and you understand what the club’s about, and you understand what the demands are and the expectations are, you feel it. You don’t need the fans to remind you – you know.
“You lose a game and you just want to get home, back indoors, and it’s like it is the end of the world. Plans are cancelled, rounds of golf are cancelled that were booked in. It’s not the right time because it means that much to the fans.”
He added: “It does control what you do and it does control how things are. Your family live it too and your kids live it in the school playground. Your wife lives it on Instagram. It’s the only thing that matters when it comes to Rangers.”
Despite highlighting the pressurised environment at Ibrox, Butland described it as a “special” place to play. He also spoke of the need for the team to give Gers fans something to shout about after a difficult season.
Rangers certainly regained some pride on Thursday night as Ferguson’s 10 men kept their Euro dream alive with backs-to-the-wall performance against Bilbao after Robin Propper’s early red card. Butland’s replacement Kelly was the hero this time after making a 79th-minute penalty save during the goalless draw.
Butland looked highly disappointed at being left on the bench, but was one of the first to congratulate Kelly at full-time. Kelly spoke of reliving Butland’s Fenerbahce moment as he thanked him for his support after the final whistle.
Asked what was said during the post-match exchange, Kelly said: “Just kind of laughing as if to say, my God, what a night. I said to him, his Fenerbahce was me tonight.
“You get that amazing moment as a goalkeeper and he was so pleased for me. He’s such a genuine guy as well. Big thanks to him, big thanks to all the goalkeeping group.
“Listen, me and Jack have got a great relationship. It’s not an easy position to get into when you’ve got the goalie who was the best in the league by an absolute mile last year.
“If something difficult is happening, then something good is always around the corner. Big Jack is an incredible goalie, he’s got absolutely everything in his game.”
Kelly added: “We all go through difficult moments. I stepped in, but he’s an amazing goalie. He’s a big help to me and I learn so much from him.
“I’m well aware of the quality. He’s an incredible goalie. He’s got every blinking attribute you’d love as a goalie. Amazing goalie, amazing guy.”
