Rangers View: Hagi performance v Dundee Utd proves he must be played in central role
Rangers continued their storming start to the Scottish Premiership season with a 4-0 win over Dundee United on Saturday.
Goals from Ryan Kent, James Tavernier, Kemar Roofe, and Scott Arfield were enough to see them over the line, but it was Ianis Hagi who really caught the eye.
The Romania international was mainly operating in a more central role as opposed to the berth out on the left flank that he has occupied for much of the earlier parts of this season.
And Steven Gerrard’s decision to drop him into a more conventional number 10 role really paid dividends.
Hagi registered two assists, but his overall game was notably better too.
The playmaker recorded more passes, a higher dribble success rate, and a higher xG, as per Wyscout.
But it was his end product that really made a difference in this one.
For his first assist, Hagi drops into a pocket of space on the edge of the box.
Quite simply, he wouldn’t have been able to occupy such a position if he was shackled to the left flank.
But in this instance he is able to buy himself some vital extra seconds by showing some of his natural intelligence and anticipatory instincts.
That means that when he does receive possession, he is able to get his head up and pick the perfect pass.
It’s not an easy ball either.
Hagi needs to feed it into the highlighted space to release Kent’s run, but also needs to deal with the encroaching defender.
His solution is to put it through his opponent’s legs, almost literally threading the eye of a needle.
If we roll the clip on further, we can see just how measured Hagi’s pass was.
For his second, Hagi peels off into the right channel, springing the offside trap wonderfully.
The ball through is good, but the pace he shows to streak away from his man is superb.
The 21-year-old then slows things down, and his composure to face up to the defender, allowing his teammates to catch up with him, before spotting the late run of Arfield to lay on the assist, is brilliant.
The pass, though simple, is weighted to perfection, and puts the icing on top of another stunning performance from the Gers.
For Hagi personally, this was a standout performance in his season so far, and for his manager the message is clear – he has to play through the centre from now on.
In other Rangers news, Exclusive: Alex McLeish claims Rangers boss Gerrard needs to win a trophy this season.