Following on from Allan McGregor, James Tavernier is next under the microscope in our series of Rangers Half-Term Reports as we evaluate the captain’s contributions up until the winter break.
Individually, 2019/20 has been something of a mixed bag for the 28-year-old.
He’s had his struggles both defensively and in front of goal, which at one stage led to calls from sections of the Gers support to have him stripped of the captaincy and dropped from the starting XI.
Arguably, without his errors against Young Boys and Hearts during a shaky October, Rangers could have won their Europa League group and currently be sitting joint top of the Premiership table while still holding their game in hand.
His struggles from 12 yards have also seen him relieved of penalty-taking duties by the coaching staff. Tav scored two but missed three from the spot over the opening months of the season, against Progres Niederkorn, Feyenoord and Motherwell. Thankfully, though, the misses weren’t costly and his side would go on to win all three of those matches.
Across November and particularly, December, though, as the fixtures came thick and fast, Tavernier found a way to get back to his best.
As well as performing much more capably at the back, he’s been a constant driving force down the right side, looking to whip in crosses and create opportunities for his teammates. His efforts have seen him record 12 assists in all competitions to go alongside three goals – a very fine effort for a full-back.
His durability over the first half of the campaign has also been remarkable. Only missing two of his team’s 37 matches in all competitions, Tav has played 3150 minutes and contributed to 19 clean sheets [Transfermarkt].
The skipper has made mistakes, there’s no denying that. However, his reaction to that dip in form and the way he’s since managed to silence his critics has been highly impressive.
(Photo by Ewan Bootman/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
He ended the year on a high with the second of two fine individual displays against Celtic in the month, and he deserves major credit for leading Rangers into a strong position at this mid-way point in the campaign.
The Englishman is currently rated at £5.4m by Transfermarkt, but he’s worth a lot more than that to Steven Gerrard.
