Ibrox View: Worrying Goldson trend cost Rangers dearly v Hamilton
RANGERS OPINION
Wednesday night’s defeat against Hamilton was arguably one of the most frustrating performances that Rangers have put in this season.
Aside from the shocking result, which in itself was enough to leave supporters tearing their hair out, the manner in which the Gers failed to find a way of breaking down their lowly visitors, despite having a majority of possession and 31 efforts on goal, was nothing short of infuriating.
Perhaps most annoying of all, however, was the manner in which Steven Gerrard’s men conceded the vital goal that cost them so dearly.
The error came from Connor Goldson, whose insistence on trying to play out from the back under immense pressure proved to be damning.
After a botched clearance was immediately lumped back towards the Gers, the centre-back took the decision to try and put his foot on the ball, rather than clearing his lines, and was made to pay the price.
A look at where Goldson was when he received possession reiterates just how poor a choice it was.
As can be seen below, the only sensible option in that scenario is to get the ball as far away from danger as possible. Anything else, as proved to be the case, was essentially asking for trouble, and the fact that Goldson did not recognise that is truly worrying.
Even more concerning, however, is that the 27-year-old had looked shaky all evening when trying to play out from the back.
In an incident in the 11th minute, for example, Goldson stepped out from the back, as shown below, and ignored a number of much simpler passes to misplace a ball to a Hamilton player in his own half.
Trying to knock a ball in behind for an on-running striker is one thing, but to waste possession in such a potentially dangerous area is downright reckless.
It’s unsurprising to learn, therefore, that Goldson actually lost possession 11 times at Ibrox on Wednesday, with six of those incidents giving possession to the opposition in Rangers’ half, as per Wyscout.
This is an issue that must be addressed immediately.
As a point of comparison, George Edmundson, the less experienced of Gerrard’s two centre-backs, lost the ball just seven times over the course of the 90 minutes, as per Wyscout.
The simple fact is that there is not getting away from how poor Rangers have been of late – both results and performances have been lacking, and confidence is evidently at a real low.
But when that is the case, and when the whole side is feeling shaky, the best way to deal with that issue is to ensure that the foundation of the team – namely, your goalkeeper and your two centre-backs – are performing as solidly and as reliably as possible.
If that means hoofing the ball upfield instead of dillydallying on the edge of your own penalty area – even if that is the style of play that the manager may be trying to cultivate – then so be it.
In other Rangers news, ‘Kick up the backside’ – Jim White launches irate rant at Gers squad after loss v Hamilton.