RANGERS defender Madjid Bougherra has told Scotland players who carp about criticism to try playing for Algeria.
The African star returned this week to Glasgow on a high after helping his nation take a vital step towards World Cup qualification with a victory over Senegal in Algiers.
But he revealed the price of failure in his homeland often sees players locked in their own dressing room for up to four hours for their own protection after a defeat.
He has sprawled across the floor of the team bus as stones thrown by angry supporters shattered the windows all around him.
Meanwhile, team-mates have received death threats for failing to satisfy the demands of Algeria's success-starved supporters and players' families frequently live in terror of reprisals if their loved ones fail to do the business on the pitch.
It surely places into context the brickbats thrown at the Scotland squad following their 2-0 defeat in Macedonia seven days ago.
Bougherra, 25, and team-mates, including Brahim Hemdani, were lauded by fans for two days last weekend after their 3-2 victory over Senegal helped take them a step closer to qualification for the World Cup finals for the first time since 1986.
It's little wonder the country's fans are so passionate as Bougherra revealed they frequently choose to purchase a ticket to watch the national team at the El Djezair Stadium rather than buy food.
Bougherra said: "Before the game against Senegal we knew our qualifying campaign would come to an end if we drew or lost and now if we win our last game in Liberia we will go on to the second qualifying group.
"It will have five groups of four teams. Winners will automatically qualify for the World Cup and the top three teams from each group will make it to the African Cup of Nations, also in two years.
"It has been so long since we went to a World Cup that if we qualify for South Africa we will be treated as kings.
"For 25 years our side has been average but now we have a good team, the best in a generation. We have been together for three years and it's now or never.
"We made the people very happy last weekend with our victory over Senegal.
"The people were going crazy in the streets for two days, jumping around and waving flags.
"Afterwards Brahim Hemdani returned to France for a few days. It was the first time he had played for us at home and many Algerians were coming up to him in France and saying, 'Thank you, thank you.'
"In Algeria, many of the young generation don't have jobs.
"Football back home is just like it is in Brazil. People come to the game to forget and often go without anything to eat and instead buy a ticket to watch the team.
"When you win you are a king but when you lose a game it can be dangerous.
"For example, we lost 2-0 against Guinea two years ago and as a result didn't qualify for the African Cup of Nations.
"The players had to wait in the dressing room for four hours to give the fans time to clear the road but they still wait and you have to lie on the floor of the team bus as if you are sleeping because they throw stones and break every window.
"If you score an own goal or if the fans believe the loss was your fault it can even be dangerous for your family. Some team-mates have had death threats.
"But it's my country, so I need to go and play. It's big pressure but good pressure and we're winning now, so everything is okay."
Algeria leapfrogged Senegal in their four-team group, which also includes Gambia, and Bougherra's performance did not pass without incident.
The former Charlton player, a £2million capture for the Ibrox club last month, was caught up in a row with team-mate Slimane Raho but denied reports they had come to blows on the pitch.
He said: "Senegal scored their second goal near the end at the back post.
"I stuck with my man but the second player got free and so I got angry and asked why there wasn't cover.
"My team-mate and I were a bit 'blah, blah, blah' with each other but everything was soon forgotten after the match.
"Some people claimed we were fighting but no, never."
However, Bougherra revealed he is ready to scrap all the way for one thing and that's the SPL title. It's his and Rangers' priority after their embarrassing European exit against Kaunas.
Rangers proved they have the bottle for the fight with a 4-2 victory at Celtic a fortnight ago and he is relishing the challenge of setting the pace in the months ahead, starting against Kilmarnock at Ibrox this afternoon.
Bougherra said: "I enjoyed the experience of the game against Celtic. There is real fervour and passion among the fans and you can see the looks of concentration on the faces of the players before the game. The championship is our objective. We have no UEFA Cup, no Champions League so we will have more time to rest and no excuses not to win it.
"When you come to Rangers you must win every week and if we maintain the tempo we have set I believe we can go on and win the title.
"I'm enjoying life here. Rangers are a big club with a very good training ground.
"I'm comfortable with everyone I partner in the team.
"I don't know if the fans are no longer worried about the departure of Carlos Cuellar after seeing me play. If they think this I'm very happy but I know I can get better and I will do better.
"I can still progress in fitness terms and you are going to see me get better with every game.
"At Charlton, it wasn't the end of the world if we lost a game but in Glasgow it's important to win every week because Celtic are behind and we must keep our distance.
"Again, I'm happy with this pressure. We must win and then after 48 hours it is forgotten and we concentrate on the next match.
"It's vitally important to have this mentality when you play at such a high level."