Rangers defender James Tavernier could soon find his place under threat at Ibrox after a poor performance against Lyon, according to Scottish football pundit Tam McManus.
The Gers lost 4-1 against French side Lyon in the Europa League on Thursday, where Rangers players largely underperformed.
Tavernier was really poor against Lyon, and the Daily Record gave him a 4/10 rating for his lacklustre performance. The way Malick Fofana tapped in Lyon’s fourth goal at the back post will suggest that the Gers right-back is not performing to any accepted level.
McManus said on PLZ Soccer that Tavernier was “dreadful”. His position in the side now is really under pressure.
He said: “Tavenier’s position for me is really under pressure. The Rangers fans have turned on him. He was dreadful. It was the final goal that came right across the box he got done on the back post again.”
Rangers captain is letting the team down
Tavernier has been a great servant for the club, but it is high time for Philippe Clement to use him properly. His positioning at the back has been shocking, and it is becoming a recurrent theme now that he is failing to track his marker.
Being the leader of this side, this is not the example he should set for others. He can still be a valuable member of the side, given his quality and experience, but Clement must now understand that Tavernier should not start week in and week out.
The problem for Rangers runs deep. Only a couple of years back, Rangers defeated some big European clubs, both home and away and reached the final of the Europa League under Giovanni van Bronckhorst.
However, the current Rangers squad is not that strong enough. The recruitment has been very poor. The players who have replaced the ones who left are not of that same calibre, and thus we see a massive gulf in quality.
