Robin Propper admits Scottish football has been a baptism of fire – speaking out in his homeland about ‘not playing every game’ at Rangers.
The Dutch centre-back was tipped as a coup when he arrived from Twente in the summer but has come under fire for some of his recent performances. He was dropped by Philippe Clement for league games with Aberdeen and Hearts, but returned against Dundee United – where he didn’t exactly impress.
It’s been a learning curve for the 31-year-old who is used to being one of the first names on the teamsheet in the Netherlands. Propper told Voetbal Primeur: “‘I’m enjoying myself here, but certainly in the league I’m not playing every game. There is room for improvement.
“The coach switches a lot, he looks at the opponent. We are not used to that in the Netherlands, and as a player you still want to play as much as possible.”
Stylistically the Scottish Premiership and the Dutch Eredivisie could hardly be more different and the tendency for direct football has taken a bit of getting used to. Propper went on: “Despite my age, I have to get used to Scottish football. In the Eredivisie, a lot focuses on tactical and footballing ability. Everyone wants to build up. Here the focus is more on results, you play against opponents who give a long ball from the goalkeeper. Many Scottish teams want to go forward as quickly as possible, put deep balls over the defence, fast towards the opponents’ goal.
“You hear it also notice it in the crowd, they want the ball forward, where in the Netherlands they might rather opt for the ball wide. Slow it down. Here sometimes they lack the patience for that.
“In the Netherlands, I took a lot of account of the short ball being played in to the striker. Then the striker gets into the ball, here it’s right at your back. So I have to position myself differently, and use my physicality differently.
“But that’s why I came here; to learn something new. My goal is to be an undisputed starter at the end of the year, that’s what I’m going for.”