Ibrox View: Should Rangers starting playing a 4-4-2 to combat dire 2020 slump?
RANGERS OPINION
The inquest into what has gone wrong for Rangers since the turn of the year will no doubt be a long and painstaking one.
After matching Celtic stride for stride before the winter break – and even holding the advantage in the title race after that 2-1 win at Parkhead in December – the Gers have fallen away severely ever since.
Now 13 points adrift of the Hoops, albeit with a game in hand, even if the season is resumed at some point in the relatively near future, it feels as if the Scottish Premiership is a foregone conclusion at this stage.
With that in mind, it begs the question, what should Steven Gerrard do, if anything, to get things back on track at Ibrox?
Perhaps the most obvious place to start would be a change in formation.
As per Wyscout, the Gers have played a 4-3-3 in 77% of their matches over the course of this season.
But if the boss were to change things up, how would he go about it?
Despite having only employed it for 1% of matches, there would be some who make an argument for a more traditional 4-4-2.
That way, the Gers could keep the width of players like Ianis Hagi and Ryan Kent, but also provide support for Alfredo Morelos by partnering him up with either Jermain Defoe or Florian Kamberi, depending on how Gerrard wanted to approach a match.
But would it be a wise move?
A look at the numbers would suggest perhaps not.
In matches where Gerrard has played a 4-4-2, the Gers have averaged just seven crosses per 90 minutes, as per Wyscout.
In contrast, that figure jumps to 19.5 when he deploys a front three.
Similarly, with two up top, the Bears register an average of 4.25 shots on goal per game.
With a lone striker and two wingers, that number rockets up to 15.44.
Perhaps most damning of all, xG drops from 1.85 per game to just 0.47 per game whenever the manager opts to player another striker alongside Morelos.
It almost seems counterintuitive that another centre forward would limit the Gers’ attacking capabilities, but the stats don’t lie.
Perhaps given a little more time to bed into the system, things would change, but right now, if the manager is looking for instant results from the squad he has at his disposal, switching to a 4-4-2 does not seem to be the way to go.
In other Rangers news, ‘Massive’ – Ibrox Exclusive: Bruce reacts to fresh Gers ‘kick in the teeth’ after UEFA report.