Saikat Mandal

Sat 10 December 2022 6:30, UK

There is an element of both risk and excitement with Micheal Beale’s appointment at Rangers.

One of Beale’s primary jobs at Ibrox will be to get the best out of existing players, especially those who are the senior members of the club.

The left-back is one area where he won’t need to buy a new player, but what he can do is galvanize Borna Barisic and get the best out of him.

The Croatian defender played against Japan in the World Cup, where he was really good going forward but showed vulnerabilities at the back.

It has been his trait throughout under Giovanni van Bronckhorst. Barisic seems like he has completely lost his confidence while defending. He keeps on making errors at the back, and at times it is painful to watch.

This season, Barisic has played regularly under the Dutchman, while Ridden Yilmaz has been overlooked. It has to be said that the 30-year-old defender has been really poor.

He came under strong criticism from the fans at times, and he looks like a shadow of the player he once was under Steven Gerrard.

But Beale can get the best out of him. Barisic is a technically gifted and experienced defender who needs a bit of confidence.

“Going forward, he’s excellent, but he just looked to me a player low on confidence,” said Barry Ferguson on Go Radio [5 December].

Given his quality and experience, Barisic should be in his prime form at the moment.

He should be getting more assists and providing solidity at the back. Barisic was dreadful in the 3-0 defeat against Celtic at Parkhead last season, and after that, he simply never played with confidence again.

There have been some good performances from him, especially in Europa League last season, but we all know he is capable of more than that.

Beale got the best out of him once, and hopefully, he will get the best out of him again. It will be like weaving magic if he can do that.

In other Rangers news, this prolific goalscorer is “excited” by speculation linking him with a move to Ibrox in January.