James Tavernier’s average position v St Johnstone shows Giovanni van Bronckhorst naivety
Rangers created plenty of chances against St Johnstone on Sunday afternoon, but Giovanni van Bronckhorst left his defence vulnerable.
Gers put on another frustrating first-half display v St Johnstone on Sunday, with James Brown scoring for the hosts just minutes before the break.
Rangers weren’t short of chances, but they failed to find the back of the net and James Tavernier’s positioning in particular left the side vulnerable to the counter-attack.
Opta revealed every player’s average position, and Tavernier on the right flank stands out. Tavernier was practically playing alongside Fashion Sakala on the wing.
It left Leon King vulnerable when St Johnstone broke down the wing, and Van Bronckhorst has to take the blame.
An easy fix
After a few weeks of poor results and performances, Van Bronckhorst likely wanted his side to approach the St Johnstone game with aggression.
However, it backfired and while his team enjoyed a handful of shots, they weren’t able to find a vital breakthrough.
Gers continued to push as the minutes ticked on, but yet again they were found short at the back and conceded the first goal for the third consecutive match.
With Rangers low on confidence and suffering so many injuries in defence, Van Bronckhorst should know that King and Ben Davies would need protecting by their full-backs.
Borna Barisic sat slightly further back than Tavernier, and Van Bronkhorst desperately needs to make sure Tavernier does the same in the second half.
Bursting forward and overlapping Sakala is great to see, but the Rangers captain also needs to make sure he’s disciplined and tracks back when needed.
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