Expectations crush players at Rangers and the new boys will soon see how chaotic it is
THERE’S an old saying that pressure can either burst a pipe or create a diamond. And during his four years in Glasgow, James Tavernier has witnessed a few Rangers players crack under the weight of representing the Ibrox giants.
A notoriously febrile atmosphere at the best of times, the Old Firm melting pot promises to bubble over more ferociously than ever next season as Celtic aim to reach nine-in-a-row.
But Tavernier has vowed the senior players at Rangers will all play their part to ensure Steven Gerrard’s new summer recruits are as prepared mentally as they are physically for the pursuit of silverware in the momentous campaign that lies ahead.
‘Can the expectation from outside Rangers crush players? Yes, I have seen it done to certain players,’ said the Ibrox captain.
‘You need to see who can cope and who can’t.
‘But we have a good group of boys at the club and it’s my duty now, along with the other experienced guys here, to let the new boys know what it (Rangers) is all about because they will soon know once the season starts.
‘Once the new campaign unfolds, they will all see how chaotic it can get.
‘But there are a lot of boys here from last season who are capable of (handling the pressure) and the new boys have shown great signs of settling well.’
So far, Rangers boss Gerrard has brought in Filip Helander, Jake Hastie, Jordan Jones, Sheyi Ojo, George Edmundson, Greg Stewart and Joe Aribo.
In a bid to stop outside pressure being heaped upon them, Tavernier will be advising the new boys to lay off social media.
‘A lot of things can be said on there and you don’t want to put your head in a different place,’ said the 27-year-old right-back.
‘You want to stay focused on the job in hand, so you want to try and stay out of the limelight as much as you can.
‘We all want to achieve the same things, so we can’t get caught up in anything else. It’s going to have to be a real team effort.’
Last season, Rangers finished nine points behind Celtic but dropped ten points against Kilmarnock.
Gerrard’s second season kicks off at Rugby Park on Sunday and Tavernier wants a more ‘streetwise’ Rangers to get off to a flier against Angelo Alessio’s men, who will be desperate to bounce back from their embarrassing Europa League exit to Connah’s Quay Nomads.
‘The first game of the new season is always very important,’ said Tavernier.
‘It’s against Kilmarnock and it’s a new team, a new manager and also a new plastic pitch, which will help.
‘We want to start the campaign off with a win.
‘If you have any desire to challenge for anything at the end of the season, you have to win games. And the first match of the season is a must-win for us.
‘We need more consistency this season. We can’t take our foot off the gas in games because we did that last season and dropped points.
‘That hindered us, but we have learned our lessons. We don’t want to be experiencing any of that in the new season.
‘Do we need to be more streetwise? Yes, and I think the gaffer has also identified that we have to be clinical in front of goal when we have chances.
‘We have to shut up shop at the back, need consistency and be disciplined. If we nail those aspects, then we will have a better season than the last one.
‘Is this the biggest season of my career so far? Yes, definitely. But leading this club is a responsibility that I am taking with a lot of pride. Hopefully we can be successful.’
Before the big league kick-off this weekend, there is the matter of a revenge trip to face Progres Niederkorn on Thursday night.
The Stade Josy Barthel was the scene of Europa League humiliation
“You need to see who can cope and who can’t”
in 2017 when Pedro Caixinha’s side were knocked out of Europe by the Luxembourg part-timers.
Leading 2-0 from the first leg at Ibrox last Thursday, Tavernier is desperate to finish the job and bury the ghosts of the past.
He said: ‘It’s obviously one of the worst defeats in the club’s history. We just want to get over the finish line on Thursday night. That’s what we are focusing on.
‘It was a different team and different management back then but for the boys that were here then — and for the fans — if we could do that, it would be closure.’
Tavernier missed a penalty which would have given Rangers a 3-0 lead to take to the second leg in Luxembourg, after becoming distracted by FIFA’s new rules on goalkeepers moving.
The scorer of 18 penalties for Rangers, missing just three during his Ibrox career, he will not be passing over the responsibility to a team-mate.
‘I am still on the penalties,’ insisted Tavernier. ‘But it was frustrating to miss one in the first leg. I had been speaking during pre-season about the new FIFA rules and I was under the impression that the keepers were not allowed to move.
‘Allan McGregor told us during pre-season that keepers had to stay still. But when I questioned the referee after we got the penalty in the first leg, he said: “No, it’s fine (for him to move).”
‘That maybe took my mind off it and I tried to put it too close to the post. But I am fully confident in myself to step up and score the next one. I have scored a few penalties, to be fair.’