In the 92nd minute of Saturday’s Old Firm, Jon Flanagan entered the fray.
He replaced the excellent, but exhausted, Scott Arfield, as the Gers looked to hold on to their hard earned lead.
It was only his second appearance this month, with his last outing coming in the 1-0 home defeat to Aberdeen.
That evening, the defender was replaced at half-time after a poor display. It left people wondering if and when he would get another opportunity.
Despite remaining part of most match day squads in the interim, he failed to appear in the next six matches. A run which included the do or die Europa League clash in Vienna.
However, his token appearance on Saturday suggests that he is still a part of the manager’s plans.
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The manager remains a fan
Gerrard clearly sees something in Flanagan as a player.
That much was made clear as he continually selected him at left-back ahead of both Lee Wallace and Andy Halliday during Borna Barisic’s initial extended spell on the sidelines.
The ex-Liverpool player was under a lot of scrutiny during that period, but a stint on the bench has given him time out of the limelight.
The winter break and Rangers’ mid-season training camp in Tenerife also come at a good time. A cleanish slate of sorts and fresh opportunity to impress, await the scouser.
Yet, James Tavernier, Barisic and the resurgent Halliday provide stiff competition at full-back.
Flanagan isn’t completely out of the picture, but he certainly has a lot of work to do to fully establish himself at Ibrox.
