SOUTHEND United manager Phil Brown believes Nile Ranger must shake off his bad-boy image to fulfil his potential.

Ranger has been working hard since returning to the Shrimpers last month.

But Brown is keen for the striker to keep high standards.

“When Nile is professional, he has the respect of everybody but when he’s unprofessional he has the respect of nobody and he has to realise that,” said the Blues boss.

“There’s a tardiness about him because he’s often late. It gets people’s backs up and makes them angry.

"He’s been a professional footballer for seven years and at times you wonder if he knows what professional means.

"That’s the truth of it and he also has to drop this bad-boy image because I don’t think he’s a bad lad at all.”

Brown opted against including Ranger in the under-23 match at MK Dons yesterday to prevent him getting injured.

And he was impressed by Ranger’s work in training.

“I included four or five of the young lads in with Nile and worked him hard,” said Brown.

“It was a session I used at Bolton with the likes of Youri Djorkaeff and Jay-Jay Okocha when they needed to do extra.

"It finishes with some running and Nile was at the front, which is something I’ve never seen before.

"He needs to keep that going and nothing would give me greater pleasure than to see him make the most of his talent.”