Former Rangers star, Alan Hutton, believes fans of the Light Blues are starting to see the best of Nigerian international, Joe Aribo, since his positional move to the right-hand side of the attack.
Speaking to Football Insider, Hutton waxes lyrical about the summer signing from Charlton as he continues to go from strength to strength.
So what has Hutton said?
When asked for his opinion on the midfielder’s switch in recent games, he said:
“I think Aribo’s been brilliant, since he moved forward, I actually really like him there, he can really showcase his skills. He’s very comfortable on the ball so, since he’s moved forward, I think he’s been playing really, really well”.
“He gives Rangers another dimension. It’s not just running in behind – he’ll take it to feet and he’ll spin, lovely little passes. He’s very clever, he’s a really good footballer”.
“He’s really coming into his own now, we’re seeing the very best of him and it’s since he’s been switched further forward”.
So is Hutton correct?
It is a small sample size but the numbers would suggest yes, just now; in his last three games he has 1 goal and 3 assists, considering his overall statistics are 6 goals and 7 assists from 31 games for the season, he has more than justified Steven Gerrard’s decision to persuade him to make the move north.
Despite Addicks manager, Lee Bowyer, saying Aribo had made a bad move by moving to the Gers, he has gone on to make his international debut, score his first international goal and score in the Europa League, add this to playing in front of 50,000 fans every second week and you begin to wonder if Bowyer thought it was Berwick Rangers he was signing for.
Aribo can do a job in a deeper midfield position, he just can’t hurt opposition defences as effectively, he has exceptionally quick feet and frequently beats the first defender; when he does this on the half-way line or in his own half there are plenty of players that can recover the situation, but when he does it in the opposition box it creates space and opportunities for himself and others, as shown from his recent displays.
Where is Joe Aribo's best position?
Midfield
Attacking midfield
An attacking midfielder should be getting double-digits goals and assists for Rangers and the 23-year-old is well on the way to achieving this despite playing most of the season in central midfield, players often take time to settle in Glasgow before finding their best form, if the best is yet to come from Aribo, fans of the Ibrox side really are in for a treat over the second-half of the season.