FLANAGAN SET FOR FAIR FIGHT

Full-back knows place in Rangers first team hangs in the balance as Gerrard offers him no guarantees

AS a friend, fellow Scouser and former Liverpool team-mate of Steven Gerrard, Jon Flanagan would seem the outstanding candidate for preferential treatment in the Rangers dressing room. Not a bit of it. Despite being fit and available for the past six weeks, the defender has found himself starved of game time and warned by his manager that he must knuckle down and graft his way to a new contract between now and the end of the season.

Flanagan followed Gerrard to Glasgow 18 months ago but has struggled to nail down a regular place in the starting XI. Injury has played some part in his dearth of appearances but, with Rangers mining consistent form both domestically and in Europe, he has found club captain James Tavernier and Borna Barisic impossible to displace from the full-back positions.

A chance is likely to fall his way during a congested December fixture card that will feature eight games across three competitions, starting with this afternoon’s

visit of Hearts to Ibrox.

He knows he must take it or risk being cut loose by his long-time ally next summer.

‘I’m definitely ready to fight to stay at Rangers,’ said the 26-year-old.

‘I’m always up for a fight, whether it’s at right-back or left-back, I’ve just got to keep working hard.

‘The manager will always give you a straight answer. I’ve known him a long time now and if I ever need anything I’ll go and see him and if he ever needs to talk to me about something, he’ll do it openly and honestly. ‘We were friends as team-mates, but it’s different now. Things have changed but we still have a good relationship and we have spoken about a contract.

‘Hopefully, something can get sorted in the near future. I am loving my time up here, it’s similar to Liverpool really both in terms of the people and the city itself.

‘It is great to be a part of it. I am ready to take my chance when it comes again.’

Gerrard was happy to give

Flanagan’s career a shot in the arm after a couple of unsatisfactory loan spells at Burnley and Bolton, but insists the next decision on Flanagan’s future will not be bound by sentiment.

He said: ‘Jon is clear on the situation because I’ve had the conversation with him, man-to-man. I love him as a guy and an ex-team-mate. But I have to park that friendship for obvious reasons.

‘He’s had a couple of injuries that set him back at the start of the season. I’m there for him and he’s got my support but he knows exactly what he’s got to do between now and the end of the season to earn a new contract.’

Although naturally right-sided, Flanagan (below) has been used most often as a left-back in a Rangers shirt. With his team on the front foot in the majority of matches, it’s been natural for Gerrard to prefer Tavernier and the ever-improving Barisic as roving options but the shakes endured by the captain at certain stages of the season have led some Rangers fans to wonder whether Flanagan might be a better bet for some of the tougher games on the schedule.

‘There could be a chance for him with all the games we have,’ continued Gerrard. ‘People are carrying knocks and the games are coming thick and fast.

‘Everyone has to be on their toes but Borna is in incredible form and Tav is the captain. Yes, he has had a dip in form that he’s fighting to get back from but he’s very robust and is available for every session and every game.

‘The challenge is there for Jon. He knows the respect he’s got from the staff but he also knows the situation. He’s got a fight on to stay at Rangers and that’s the way it’s got to be.’

Were he to combine Flanagan’s doggedness with Tavernier’s buccaneering instincts, Gerrard would perhaps have the identikit modern full-back on his hands.

Instead, the manager has found himself deploying Flanagan as a utility player who was last seen on the left in the 2-0 defeat to Celtic in September.

‘I obviously played the first part of the season and then I got the injury,’ reflects the former England Under-21 internationalist.

‘It has been frustrating. I have probably been back for a monthand-a-half now and I’m feeling up to speed, ready to show what I can do. ‘There could be opportunities in December because there’s a lot of game time between now and the winter break.’

Things have changed... but I still have a good relationship with the manager