Rangers pointed towards perfect solution to help under-fire star as answers sit inside trusted Gerrard tactic

Pundit Michael Stewart believes the way to get the best of James Tavernier at Rangers is for them to go back to the system they used to play under former manager Steven Gerrard.

The right-back has struggled for form over recent times. The Gers enjoyed a lot of success under their ex-boss before he left for Aston Villa. He now manages in Saudi Arabia with Al-Ettifaq.

Tavernier, who is 32-years-old, joined Rangers back in 2015 and has been ever-present for them since then. His contract at Ibrox expires in the summer of 2026 meaning he still has a couple of years left to run.

Stewart has delivered his verdict on the player’s situation and has said on the The Scottish Football Social Club: “When Steven Gerrard was there, that to me was when Rangers really nailed down the system perfectly. You had (Borsa) Barisic and (James) Tavernier, Steven Davis anchored the midfield and he would drop back, not only into those full-back areas but centrally too to give those centre-halfs the chance to slide across a bit more.

“With the two either side, whether it was Glen Kamara or Ryan Jack, and the two number 10’s in front, they had a system where even out of possession they controlled a lot of games in terms of where the opposition were actually moving with the ball because they had it down to a tee.

“Think about when they had their games against Celtic, it was that period where they really started to disrupt Celtic’s play and then they got the upper hand. A lot of it was down to good players and an incredibly well-drilled system that they moved and shuffled. It helped James Tavernier massively.”

Long-serving Rangers man

Tavernier has made 473 appearances for Rangers in all competitions to date and has scored 126 goals, a whopping 24 of which came in the last campaign. He has only found the net once so far this term though.

The Bradford-born man said last month: “Rangers have always given me that platform to play my football and the foundations to do something that a lot of people would love to do, so I've always got a great debt to pay, but it is football. If teams come in, they come in, but I am fully focused on the job in hand and I know I've still got a lot to achieve.

"It is part of the parcel with football. You see it up and down the country. As fans they want to display their frustration, you can understand the frustration that people have and obviously, us as players are frustrated as well.

"We never go out there wanting to lose a game, or even draw a game - especially playing for Rangers we always want to win. We will always give our 100 per cent effort to that cause. On certain days it can go too far but it is something in the past, it is not something I dwell on. I always keep looking forward and obviously, it motivates me more to do better."