“That’s football,” said Stewart, as quoted on the BBC Sport website on Thursday night [07:05pm].
“Patterson missed his opportunity last week when [James] Tavernier got injured but it’s presented itself now.
“I like what Steven Gerrard has done. It’s good management.”
Good management or dangerous precedent?
Seven Rangers players have broken COVID protocol this season.
Jordan Jones and George Edmundson have both already recieved fines and bans and were sent out on loan to Sunderland and Derby respectively in the January window.
It remains to be seen to the recent five rulebreakers, including Patterson, but it’s likely they’ll be hit with similar punishments in terms of bans and fines.
But what doesn’t quite add up is Gerrard’s decision to use them on Thursday night.
Firstly, with Patterson, we can understand it in a way because Tavernier’s injury means there’s no natural right-back in the first-team squad other than the youngster.
However, we cannot fathom as to why Zungu was substituted on for the latter stages of the match when it was already won.
Why was that?
If you were Jones or Edmundson, how would you be feeling? You’d be raging with Gerrard, surely.
How can those three be played almost instantly while they were left to rot and then sent out on loan?