If there is one aspect of Mikey Moore’s character that should encourage Rangers fans in a season where very few players are showing even the flickering of a spark, it is that, despite his own improvement in the last month, he appears his biggest critic.
Moore endured a torrid first couple of months on loan from Spurs and while hardly alone in such a category, the 18-year-old’s reputation increased expectation upon arrival.
You could see genuine delight on his face as fans christened him with a song last weekend at Rugby Park when he returned from a short injury lay-off and picked up where he left off, with a second goal in as many Rangers appearances. As the Englishman soon learned, it wasn’t just any song and the mood from the stands contrasted the criticism that had come his way in previous weeks.
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Danny Rohl’s arrival offered a fresh start and a tweak in positioning, it has Moore showing glimpses of the player he can be, but, looking ahead to the Premiership meeting with Hibs after Ferencvaros all-but ended his side’s Europa League hopes late last week, there is so much more to do in the six months of his spell still remaining.
“It's hard to stick it on one thing,” Moore says, asked what has turned fortunes for him in recent weeks. "I think for me, people were saying stuff to me and I was thinking, ‘Shut up, I'm going to change it myself’.
“The manager’s given me confidence, but it's down to me to go and perform on the pitch. So, for me it was always going to change at some point. I believed in myself.
“It’s starting to change now when I'm showing bits and hopefully the fans are seeing a bit more of what I do. But I can do a lot more than what I've done.
“Ever since the gaffer’s come in, we've kept picking up points [in the league], we haven't lost and we've got good momentum at the minute. There's some big games coming up that we need to win just to give ourselves a very, very good chance. And I believe that we'll keep going and we'll keep going."
It was a 1-0 win away at Easter Road last month that saw Moore play with a renewed confidence, popping up in central areas and demanding the ball against tomorrow’s opposition.
“I think the Hibs game was the start of me getting a bit of a run in the team,” he adds.
“I showed bits in the game. I think that was the start of me getting a bit of rhythm and getting going. It was a good game for me, but I think Hibs on Monday, I need to keep showing a lot more than what I did in that game and keep building on what I've done so far.’
“I've spoken to the manager a lot and he believes in me and he knows the sort of things I can do. He's given me that belief in myself which shouldn't just come from somewhere else. It needs to come from me as well.
🔵 Rangers are flying at Dens Park!
A first goal for the club for Tottenham loanee Mikey Moore ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/8l4scq5qoQ— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) November 9, 2025
"He's given me that belief that I can go and be one of the main men and I can kind of help the team in a way with goals and assists and just my all-round performance as well.”
It was indicative of Rangers’ season that Moore would pick up an injury on the most recent international duty after a man-of-the-match display in a 3-0 away win at Dens Park. It was also a sign of how the mood around the young attacker has changed that fans were so disappointed he’d face time on the sidelines, even if a return from a minor muscle complaint came earlier than expected.
“Yeah, it was frustrating. I was fuming when [the injury] happened, when they told me how long it would be and I kind of brought me a bit down. It ended up being a bit less than what I thought it would be at first,” he adds.
“It came at a frustrating time - I was starting to feel good and I had started to show a bit more. But now I'm back in it. I need to build and do my very best myself to keep away from those injuries and do everything right off the pitch and on the pitch.”
Rohl has also changed where Moore is receiving the ball, more often on the half turn in central areas instead of isolated wide by the touchline. Is that helping too?
Moore continues: “I do enjoy being in the central role. I think when I was playing a bit wider I didn't show enough and I think people can say ‘He's not good enough out wide’. But I know that I can do it out wide as well. Centrally, I am very comfortable and I've played there all throughout my youth.
“Wherever the manager wants to put me, whether it's wide or centrally, I think in both areas of the pitch I can affect it.”
That song that the away crowd at Rugby Park belted out used to be reserved for a certain Michael Mols. A name that fits the tune helps but it’s a sign of growing bond between player and fans that Moore is keeping such company with the former Ibrox hero.
“That was the best moment I've had so far for the club and if I keep scoring hopefully I'll keep hearing it. But that's down to me,” Moore smiles.
“The more I hear it, the more it'll be down to my performances and if I keep scoring goals so we'll see.
“I know that he's an unbelievable player and the fans love him loads. I wasn't sure at first but the boys had to tell me who he was so I've heard he was a ledge of a player.”
As things stand, Moore will return to Spurs in the summer. Having only turned 18 in August and with a long-term contract at Tottenham, it is not even worth speculating over a potential future at Ibrox. But what about another loan?
Moore adds: “I think for me now it's not down to me. I've got six or seven months left and I've got lots to prove until then.
“I could go off and start playing terrible and the fans don't like me anymore so they might not want me next year! I need to keep showing what I can do and we'll see what happens in the summer really.”
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