Not for the first time this year, Rangers needed a few of their key players to showcase their adaptability during the dramatic 4-2 win at Kilmarnock.
While Barry Ferguson started out with a very orthodox back-four of James Tavernier, Robin Propper, Clinton Nsiala and Jefte at Rugby Park, the backline which finished that six-goal thriller in Ayrshire was anything but.
Yet, strangely enough, Rangers looked far more secure with James Tavernier ‘exceptional’ after shifting over to centre-half.
Following Nsiala’s 31st minute removal – the youngster hauled off after a nightmare start as Killie raced into a 2-0 lead – the left-footed Ridvan Yilmaz delivered a ‘perfect’ assist for Cyriel Dessers’ stunning volley from the right-hand side of the visiting defence.
“I thought he was exceptional when he went into centre-back,” Ferguson said of Tavernier, his skipper delivering a genuine captain’s performance as Rangers snatched victory from the jaws of seemingly certain defeat.
“At times, during the game when things aren’t going well, you have to make tough decisions. Clinton is young. He will recover from it. But I just felt we had to make the change and obviously it worked out pretty well.”
The same cannot be said, however, of the alternation Ivan Juric made to his own defence ahead of Southampton’s trip to Chelsea some 24 hours earlier.
Former Rangers favourite Joe Aribo struggles in new Southampton role
Now, Joe Aribo is not the sort of player who can usually be tied down to one particular position. Is he best as a box-to-box number eight or a creative number ten? Perhaps out on the wing, where he can use his ball-carrying talents most effectively.
Aribo played in just about every role imaginable apart from centre-half and right-back during his time at Ibrox. Who could forget when Aribo led the line for Rangers in the Europa League final against Eintracht Frankfurt, opening the scoring in Seville?
Or when the former Charlton Athletic youngster netted Rangers’ Goal of the Season en route to beating Braga back in 2020?
But as Southampton’s grip loosened further on their Premier League status with a 4-0 trouncing at Stamford Bridge, head coach Juric appeared to push Aribo’s versatility beyond the limits of acceptability.
He may be 28 years of age, and nearly 400 games into his senior career, but this was the first time Joe Aribo had played as a left-sided central defender in a back three. If you asked the Saints faithful – watching on in horror as their team was torn to pieces once again, this time by a very out-of-sorts Chelsea outfit – Aribo’s first appearance as a left-sided central defender in a back three should also be his last.
“Why is Joe Aribo playing at defence for Southampton?,” asked one observer, not without justification.
“I know I’m not seeing Joe Aribo at centre-back,” adds another, writing on X.
“Southampton will surely be relegated, because I don’t understand the use of Joe Aribo in defence.”
That is perhaps the most generous use of the word ‘surely’ in human history. With two wins and nine points, Southampton are currently on track to be named the worst team ever to grace – or should that be ‘disgrace’ – the Premier League stage.
Even if they doubled their current points tally and the team in 17th failed to win a single game between now and the end of May, Southampton still wouldn’t climb out of the bottom three.
Relegation looms for Joe Aribo and Ivan Juric’s Southampton
“Hope Southampton break Derby’s record [of 11 top-flight points set in 2007/08] purely for playing Joe Aribo at centre half,” another writes, channelling his inner-Vito Corleone. “They’ve massacred my boy.”
“I know I am not a coach, but under no circumstances should Joe Aribo be playing in defence,” one argues.
“Is the Joe Aribo at centre-back experiment over yet? Had a half decent 20 mins against Ipswich and now he’s a starter with no defensive awareness at all.”
The South Coast based Daily Echo, understandably, could not bring themselves to award Aribo a greater mark than 4/10.
Of course, this is not a decision Juric would ideally liked to have made. Speaking before the game, the former Torino and Hellas Verona boss confirmed that Aribo was forced into the backline due to injuries to Jan Bednarek and Taylor Harwood-Bellis.
James Bree, a right-back by trade, also joined Aribo in a central role.
