Rangers star tells club where he stands amid possible exit as one thing will never change while he's at Ibrox
The Ibrox skipper faces an uncertain future but has refused to look too far ahead
James Tavernier finds himself running down his Rangers contract with no guarantee of the defender extending his decade-long stay at Ibrox - but he is refusing to look too far into the future.
With each passing day, the Ibrox skipper knows if this is to be his last season in Glasgow then he’d love to sign off by helping the Govan giants clinch a first league title in five years.
However, he concedes one more Premiership slip-up will kill off Rangers title bid after Danny Rohl’s side dropped two points against 10-man Motherwell on Wednesday night.
James Tavernier gives update on contract uncertainty
“I take it day by day,” Tavernier said of his contract situation. “If my wife says something about next week or about planning, I say that’s too far ahead for me. It’s always about today, then I’ll wake up tomorrow and I’ll go from there.
“I’ll always continue giving my utmost for the club and my family. The aim at the start of every season is obviously to get as many medals as you can - and nothing has changed.”
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A frustrated Tavernier knows nothing less than a victory at home to leaders Hearts on Sunday will do after Rangers fell five points behind Derek McInnes’ table-toppers following their late collapse at Fir Park.
“It’s a young squad,” Tavernier admitted. “We’ve had ups and downs this season but I’ve felt - for as young as the squad is - they’ve really come on and grown as a group. But these are the pivotal moments in the season now, where you come down to the last stretch and you’re in the title race.
Tavernier: ‘We have to respond against Hearts’
“So you can’t afford to have slip-ups like tonight so we know it was a missed opportunity. We missed some really good chances and then we have to defend better as a team to see the game out. Now we have to respond and get three points at home on Sunday.
“Every game’s a must-win but, obviously with Hearts in the lead in the table - it’s a must-win if we want to compete for the title. We have to get three points, no matter what. We’ve seen over the course of this season that we can respond.
“From now, with 12 games to go, we can’t really be having any more of these going forward. We’ve got to show different ways to win and see games out. It’s at home and we’ve got to be really on the front foot against a good team, who’ve done well this season, and get three points.
“Look, when Ibrox is rocking it makes a massive difference. But it’s down to us to get that from the fans. They expect us to perform and they’ll give it back in return. It goes both ways.”