Todd Cantwell has made a very good first impression since joining Rangers having a hand in a couple of goals already despite only starting two games since signing from Norwich City in January.
We knew that the 24-year old was being brought in to add creativity but nobody would have expected him to slot as seamlessly into Michael Beale’s system and style of play.
Although not the most physical of players, Cantwell has also shown that he is willing to put the hard yards in out of possession too but it is another tactical problem that he will have to get used to that will determine whether or not he is a success – the dreaded low block.
Speaking ahead of our Scottish Cup tie with Partick Thistle, Cantwell revealed that he was made aware of the type of tactics that he might encounter at Ibrox and that he will be one of the players tasked with unlocking visiting teams intent on sitting in, as reported by The Rangers Review:
“I was told about it before playing, but with the teams coming to Ibrox, you can see multiple times if you stop the game, such as against Ross County recently, that there are eleven players on the edge of the opposition’s box.
“That is difficult but it is the challenge we have to accept. At a club like Rangers, we need to accept that and find a way to win the games which we have done.
“The manager has a style that he wants to play, the players all understand our role and with time it will only get better.
“I’ll start to make movements that people want me to make with time. I’m just looking to kick on now and build on the relationships with the team.”
You have to have a certain mentality to play for Rangers and, already, Cantwell seems to have adapted. It’s obvious that he loves being in possession and trying to break teams down. His heat map against Ross County also confirming that he likes to be heavily involved.
Cantwell hasn’t displayed any of the rustiness that you would expect from a player who has hardly played in recent months and he will be dying to keep his place in the team against Partick Thistle where, once again, he will rarely have to look over his shoulder for opposition players with them all lined up in front of him trying to do what St Johnstone and Ross County couldn’t – stop him finding teammates in the box with laser like precision.