Helping Jags the sole focus for Barjonas

JAMIE BARJONAS has experienced victory as an opposition player at Firhill but is now looking to help Partick Thistle climb the Ladbrokes Championship.

The midfielder came on as a second-half substitute under Pedro Caixinha in May 2017 as Rangers came from behind to win a top-flight game 2-1.

‘I was only 18 at the time so I was kind of standing thinking: “Ooft, this is brilliant!” said Barjonas of his Rangers debut.

‘That was a special day for me. Coming on at 1-0 down and ending up winning the game 2-1. It’s a great stadium. Thistle have got great fans, so hopefully we can push on and do well in the league.’

Despite the highs of his debut and signing a contract extension at Rangers last summer, the 21-year-old has struggled to break into the first team under Steven Gerrard.

Barjonas (below) is accustomed to hard work, though, having experienced two different loan spells last season and a bid to prove to the Rangers manager his worth over a full first-team pre-season.

The youngster used loan moves last season at Bury and Raith Rovers to gain experience and persuade Rangers to hand him a new deal.

‘I had a couple of loan moves, which didn’t go as well as I would have wanted, but the last six months I’ve been really able to get my head down,’ he explained. ‘I got my body into a good shape and that really helped get me involved with the first team.’

Barjonas described how his spells away from Ibrox pushed him to show Gerrard why he had merited his nine league appearances under Caixinha then Graeme Murty.

‘Bury was hard because I went down there myself and, mentally, that was quite tough,’ he admitted. ‘But the Raith loan move helped me a lot. I was able to get in good shape, playing every week. Over the summer, I got my head down and said: “This is probably my last chance”.

‘I was going into the last year of my contract and realised the pre-season was going to be massive for me. I got my new contract so I’m very happy with the position I am in just now.’

Despite Barjonas’ inability to breach the pecking order at Ibrox, he has not lost faith that the opportunity remains for him back at his parent club, singing the praises of Nathan Patterson after his call-up to replace the injured James Tavernier.

‘The gaffer always says if you are good enough and you are better than the players he has got, then you will play,’ revealed Barjonas.

‘For me that is Ryan Jack, Glen Kamara and Steven Davis, who are exceptional players. But you can’t let your head go down. You need to just keep working hard.

‘Nathan Patterson deserved his chance when James Tavernier got injured. It just shows that anything can happen. Someone might get injured and you get drafted in and, if you perform, then you are in there.’