Jack’s the No.1 at Ibrox but Shanks is No.1 in Scotland
Hearts striker is my top tip to be crowned Player of Year
IT’S that time of the season again. We still don’t know who will win the league title or the Scottish Cup.
But players and football writers have to make a call on who the Player and Manager of the Year is going to be.
It’s tough when there’s still big prizes up for grabs.
But votes have to be cast in the next few weeks – and you can only go on what you’ve seen to this point.
That’s why I’ve made my choices – and they might raise a few eyebrows.
R a n g e rs hav e two outstanding candidates for Player of the Year, in my opinion.
Jack Butland in goal has been nothing short of phenomenal
And he’s joined by James Tavernier who continues to defy logic with his numbers.
Butland’s been a sensational signing for the club.
Not just for his performances on the pitch but also for his leadership skills and personality off it.
I genuinely believe that if Butland wins a Double or Treble at Rangers in his first year, he’ll have had a similar impact to Kyogo Furuhashi at rivals Celtic.
Now I know Butland can’t score the goals Kyogo can.
But I honestly feel his influence and presence since he arrived at Ibrox – as well as the saves he has made – puts him on a par with Kyogo two years ago.
So Butland has to be on my shortlist and he’s joined by my old team-mate Tav.
From right-back, the captain has already scored 21 goals this term.
Incredibly, it’s not outside the realms of possibility that he could hit a tally of 30 before the season’s out.
So he MUST be in contention when the top awards are being handed out in May.
His consistency levels, yet again, have been fantastic for Rangers especial ly since Philippe Clement came in.
So those two will take a bit of beating.
On the other side of the city, Celtic midfielder Matt O’Riley has to get a mention and he also makes my shortlist.
For the first three months he was the best player in the league with his goals, assists and performances.
He was a stand-out in the Premiership early on.
Whether it was talk of a potential move to Atletico Madrid not happening in January, I don’t know, but O’Riley’s form dipped.
I actually believe that he’s now rediscovering it because he has looked back at it in recent weeks.
But for maintaining a high standard from the start of the season until now Butland and Tavernier are ahead of him.
Those two will take a bit of beating. But you know what?
As we sit here now, I think Lawrence Shankland tops the lot of them.
I believe the Hearts striker will be crowned Scotland’s Player of the Year – and it’s hard to find an argument against it.
I questioned if Shankland could succeed in the top flight a couple of years ago.
Not because he wasn’t a very good player but because in his one previous Premiership season with Dundee United he only got eight goals.
So there were question marks. But he shut me right up last year by scoring 24 for Hearts in the league.
And to really hammer home his point he’s going to surpass it because he’s at 21 already in the league and 28 in total for club and country.
To do that for a non-Old Firm team? You can’t underestimate the achievement.
Because, with all due respect, he’s probably not getting the quality of service that Rangers and Celtic strikers do. And yet
he’s out-shooting everyone at those clubs – by a distance.
I said previously that I felt Rangers should have tried to sign Shankland from Hearts in January and I stick by that.
He has taken his game to another level now.
He’s the league’s top scorer and is on course to hit over 30 for Steven Naismith’s team.
That’s an incredible strike rate by anyone’s standards.
So at this moment in time, Shankland gets my vote.
When it comes to the Manager of the Year award, that’s even tougher with the outcome of the title race still up in the air.
And this might cause a bit of controversy but right now Celtic gaffer Brendan Rodgers ISN’T on my shortlist.
Now I’m a massive fan of Rodgers as a manager.
But in Glasgow there’s always a positive and a negative.
And at the moment green is negative due to Celtic losing in the League Cup to Kilmarnock and also letting a seven-point lead slip in the title race.
Rodgers could go on to win a Double come May and we’ll all look a bit silly. But with votes going in shortly, I don’t expect him to be in contention.
Because of that, the blue side is positive. And Clement is leading the way for honours at the moment.
He hasn’t just galvanised Rangers as a team, he has impacted the whole club – and the supporters – since he took over from Michael Beale.
He already has a trophy in the bag, which is key, and he’s on course for two more.
I said it a while back, Clement could be on the verge of something special at Ibrox.
And given where they’ve come from, he’s the favourite.
My other candidates would be Derek McInnes at Kilmarnock, Naismith at Hearts and Stephen Robinson at St Mirren.
Derek brought Killie up, stabilised them and is now building something to last at Rugby Park.
Crucially, he’s pulled off some big results this season, beating Celtic twice and Rangers once.
No one has a better record than him against the Old Firm.
My old pal Naisy had a tough time initially at Tynecastle and people were doubting him in the job.
But what a turnaround he’s had. They’ve blown everyone else away to make third spot in the league their own.
And Robinson deserves huge credit for the work he has done in Paisley.
They overachieved getting in the top six for the first time in decades last season. But he has gone and done it again – and made it look comfortable.
They finished the season with 46 points a year ago in sixth and they have 42 already, which shows clear progress to me.
They’d be my top four for the big award.
But right now – with the very rea l prospect of a
Treble on t h e horizon –
Clement wins it.