Much of Rangers record-breaking title success in 2020/21 was because teams simply couldn’t score against us. The defence was consistent with Jon McLaughlin occasionally coming in for Allan McGregor and Leon Balogun for Filip Helander. The was also the emergence of Calvin Bassey and Nathan Patterson as understudies.
For the first half of this season, the defence was a shambles. That Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s last game as Rangers manager ended with John Lundstram and James Sands as his centre-half pairing tells you everything you need to know, as does starting Champions League games with Sands and Leon King.
It’s no surprise that our results, and performances, have started to improve with Ben Davies fully fit alongside Connor Goldson which has allowed Michael Beale to be more careful with John Souttar, whose Rangers career hasn’t progressed past the first 45 minutes against Livingston on the opening day of the season.
The Gers gaffer was asked about the former Hearts stopper and how close to a return he is after the 3-0 win over his old side:
“He is in individual training at the moment. He is going great guns. He had a little bit of a reaction last week. He was very close to being in the squad and then you are thinking he has not had a lot of fitness there.
“There is no need to push as our squad is quite strong and we have good cover. I do not want to be rushing anyone unless I need to. It was different when I brought Connor Goldson and Ben Davies back in the team. I rushed those two because I needed them.”
With Leon King and James Sands both fit, there isn’t a need to rush Souttar. It’s better to make sure that he is 100% when he does come back into the team and, if Davies or Goldson do need a rest, one of them can deputise alongside their more senior partner – just don’t play them together again.
Beale seems to be thinking longer term with the likes of Souttar and Kemar Roofe, he knows that they are good players but, they are no use for us on the treatment table.