Rangers fans have, sometimes, had a bit of a love/hate relationship with James Tavernier.
With his name now mentioned in the same breath as legends like Sergio Ramos, Laurent Blanc and Ronaldo Koeman in terms of his goalscoring exploits, even his biggest critics must be softening their stance.
Italian football site Amici Sportivi, has produced another statistic that shows just how important to Rangers manager Philippe Clement James Tavernier really is.
Rangers have chance creation king in James Tavernier
The Gers boss is fully aware of the skipper’s role in his squad but after equalising John Greig’s club record for a defender and just two short of Graeme Alexander’s British scoring feats, Tavernier’s incredible numbers continue to impress.
On this list, James Tavernier is in third place on the same number as a familiar name to Rangers fans, Joey Veerman, with chances being created the statistic being looked at.
Top, is Cameron Puertas from Union Saint Gilloise who is an attacking midfield just two in front of Tavernier.
The comparison is taken over the top ten leagues in Europe with Tavernier the only player out of the five named who doesn’t play higher up the park.
Although, given how Clement uses the Gers captain, he is spending more time than ever in the final third and playing a key role almost as an auxillary midfielder.
Against Ross County at Ibrox, Tavernier was immense.
Yes, he scores a lot of penalties, but his numbers would look just as impressive without them.
On their own, 127 assists in 443 appearances for Rangers would be something to brag about.
His three against Ross County didn’t happen by accident.
The work-rate he shows to get into the right positions to then execute the right passes is exemplary.
Even when things aren’t going right for him, he keeps going.
How often have we seen him having a sub-par game but then providing the moment of magic needed to create the winner or score it himself.
James Tavernier is creating around four chances per game for Rangers, from right-back.
If you can’t appreciate that now, you will when he isn’t in the team.
