Rangers picked up their ninth win in a row after they won 3-0 against St Johnstone away from Ibrox on Sunday (19 February).
The Gers took a 1-0 lead at the break, with the goal coming from Mohamed Diomande. Rangers skipper James Tavernier then scored two goals, both coming from penalties.
With that victory, Rangers have moved two points above Celtic at the top of the table, and one could feel that they are riding high on momentum at the moment.
They are playing eye-catching football under Philippe Clement and have done incredibly well to not only catch Celtic but get ahead of them in such a short time.
After the game, Clement praised Tavernier heavily, saying that he was amazed by the amount of goals Tavernier has scored as a defender. And now, popular pundit, Tam McManus has hailed him for his “sensational” achievement.
“His records from penalties in high-pressure situations has been excellent,” said McManus on PLZ Soccer.
“He had missed a couple but nobody is going to go through that amount of penalties without missing a couple. He scored the winning goal in the Cup final, so he has come up with big goals and not just penalties.
“120 goals for a right-back is a sensational return.”
Rangers hero Tavernier doesn’t get enough praise
The former Newcastle right-back joined Rangers in 2015 when they were in the Scottish championship. In nine seasons at the club, he has scored 120 goals. This season, he has managed 19 goals so far. He has provided 10 assists as well.
This is indeed remarkable for any defender playing in any league across Europe. Of course, it is an added advantage that he takes penalties and scores a lot of goals from it. But he also manages to score from free-kicks as well.
As Clement rightly says Tavernier is a defender first, and he does his job brilliantly. His ability to pick passes is second to none, and that’s why he gets loads of assists every season.
He is the best right-back in the Scottish Premiership, without a shadow of a doubt, and will go down as a club legend when he retires.
