Steven Gerrard has explained why he gave James Tavernier the Rangers captaincy when he was appointed as manager but stopped short of a full endorsement of the job he is currently doing, as quoted by the Glasgow Times.
The 28-year-old has been under increasing scrutiny over recent weeks for a variety of reasons.
His performances on the pitch have been below par, with mistakes playing at least some part in the last two goals the Gers have conceded, in consecutive defeats to Hearts and Hamilton.
The pressure on his position was ramped up before the Accies clash, though, due to some ill-advised comments in the matchday programme which suggested he and his teammates were struggling to cope with the pressure in domestic competitions.
“Look, when we came in, from the outside James was someone who was very robust, he was always available, his form was good from what I’d seen,” said Gerrard, as quoted by the Glasgow Times. “We didn’t really know anyone in the dressing room personally.”
“We added a lot of players and needed to start new relationships from it. James got the shout from there. I think he has done a lot of things right. Last year he posted numbers that were unique for a full-back.
“I think he would be the first to admit that since Christmas his form could be better. He has said that himself. He is doing a lot of things right.”
After the explanation, though, when asked if the right-back was giving everything he was looking for in a skipper, the manager stopped short of a full endorsement.
“I think that should remain private between myself and James when we have the daily dialogue,” he added. “He knows what I demand from him on and off the pitch. So that’s all I want to say on that really.”
Verdict
These are interesting comments from Gerrard and although it’s easy to read into things too much during a poor run such as this, he doesn’t seem hugely enthusiastic about what Tavernier is currently offering.
The unnecessary detail about explaining how he and his coaching staff didn’t know the personalities of the players when they had to make a call on the captaincy, looks like it could well be an attempt to distance himself from blame around how things have panned out.
Let’s face it, this was a clear opportunity for him to state his unconditional support for Tav. Yet, he opted against doing that.
By the same token, though, there’s no suggestion here that a change is imminent.
Tavernier will almost certainly continue with the armband if he’s passed fit to face Ross County on Sunday, despite the inevitable protestations of many Bears.
