ROLL UP, ROLL UP! Come and enjoy the show under the big red, white, and blue tent.

Sights of wonder, derring-do and feats of strength and skill await. Careful on that highwire Giovanni, in Govan, you operate without a safety net or not at all.

Although critics have lauded some matinee performances it appears that Rangers won’t be up on stage come the glitzy prize-giving, at least for the domestic one they really wanted. A 2-1 defeat by Celtic in the most recent Old Firm has put paid to that.

How best to sum up that game from a Rangers perspective? Encapsulating the passion from the stands, the ‘can’t miss it’ Old Firm branding, the early Aaron Ramsey goal, the loss of confidence following the equaliser and the grinding realisation as Celtic walked away with three points and probably a Champions League cheque.

Rangers were Aye Ready, then they were Aye Maybe and then they were Aye, ‘No Happening.

And so, to Braga, the second member of our triumvirate for the first leg of Rangers’ Europa League quarter-final and a more solid if somewhat dull performance resulting in defeat.

Much like Celtic recently, I believe Rangers have the beating of the Portuguese if only they would believe, take themselves out of the comfort zone of immediate wide passing and crossing and rediscover the instinctive, incisive invention of recent recollection. I’m convinced the muscle memory is there.

A distant third comes St Mirren and Rangers’ trip to Paisley. Porto to Paisley neatly sums up the club’s transition from messianic champions last year to lost prophets in the wilderness this term.

A strong performance against limited opposition afforded the ability to re-showcase our best ‘front-foot’ football. Kemar Roofe gilding the performance with a hat-trick only for the shine to be taken off with injuries to Filip Helander and John Lundstram. Big blows without a doubt.

So back to the big show and who doesn’t like a good repeat? Celtic to Braga becomes Braga to Celtic as Rangers play the second Europa League leg at Ibrox tonight before travelling to Hampden on Sunday for an Old Firm Scottish Cup semi-final.

In amongst everything else it has the feel of two performances and results which will frame the narrative around Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s post-season job discussion. A cup performance the likes Graeme Murty suffered may move GvB into a zone of toxicity few could breathe in. I wonder if Castore do branded Hazmat suits?

It remains to be seen what Rangers emerge from the tent, will it be the strongmen or the clowns?

P.T Barnum (he of Barnum & Bailey circus fame) once said “Comfort is the enemy of progress”. Others will tell you that Rangers find themselves adrift of Celtic due to complacency, but to my mind, our predicament is a symptom of a team that has become too comfortable, a much less conscious state of being.

Comfort creeps up on you, like old age or drinking outdoors. You think you have all the angles covered, the fix is in, you are on top, with a plan and zero surprises are hiding in the bushes. That is what has happened to this Rangers team, the heady days of ’55 invincibilis’ seem like ancient history as the Latin I’ve just used.

The club appear to have taken progress for granted and believed the league win was the apex of effort.

Since then, the winning manager has left, the league appears headed across the city, the Celtic support are speaking of ‘trebles’ whilst the Rangers fans have to hope this squad can buck their irrefutable clownishness when it comes to domestic cup competitions.

Every club has barren periods, so much is a staple of nature, the question vexing the Rangers support right now is when the championship returned home last season, instead of staying mean, lean, and hungry, did those in the Boardroom and scouting departments pull on the branded sliders, pour themselves a branded ‘55’ whisky, believe the job was done and concentrate only on the club's commercial aspects?

READ MORE: Understanding Alfredo Morelos' Europa League impact and the skills Rangers need to replace

I’m not so sure of the above however, it is fair to say the board have made many a mistake (most in reference to how they engage, feel, and respond to fans). It is also fair to say the much-vaunted Ross Wilson has been more notable for some of his transfer failures than successes (although anyone who managed to retain a fee for Junior Bacuna must have some talent).

It would perhaps be good to hear more from Wilson regards his structure and progress, in amongst the commercial deals from James Bisgrove that is. He must be aware given the season-ending injury to Alfredo Morelos that it is visible (even to us in the cheap seats) that the club’s failure to secure a replacement or competition for the Colombian has moved from farce to tragedy. That is not to say I believe replacing Morelos to be an easy task or a cheap one.

What is also important to help frame any post-performance discussion is the fact many high performers from last season have fallen off the chart, people like James Tavernier and Joe Aribo to name two. There is talent that will come good there but Tavernier, in particular, risks being the Rangers captain who is defined by his multiple failures and not his singular (so far) success.

Two victories or at least two good performances are required this week, anything else and GvB might just see himself being fired out of a cannon.

Tommy is the managing editor of This Is Ibrox

You can follow them on Twitter @Thisisibrox