Mark Warburton gushes over ‘fantastic’ Rangers captain James Tavernier
James Tavernier sent Rangers fans wild when he scored his penalty in the Old Firm derby against Celtic and Mark Warburton loved it too.
The former Light Blues manager is now a coach at Premier League West Ham United and though couldn’t watch the biggest game in Scottish football live, he did catch the highlights soon after.
The Rangers skipper stood out for him having made an error for the Hoops’ opener and yet bounced back to thunder the Bears ahead in the second half.
“He responded so well to his setback, and demonstrated the character you require to play for a great club like Rangers,” Warburton said to The Sun. “Tav’s got great mental strength, and he showed it again in the Celtic game.
“The pressure on him to score with the penalty was enormous — but he showed his bottle with a fantastic strike that no keeper would ever have got near.
“Tavernier trusted his technique and got his rewards. It was a very big moment for Michael Beale and everyone else at Ibrox.”
Grit
As much as ability on the ball is important in the Old Firm derby, it is almost more important that players are willing to grit their teeth and get stuck into the game good and proper.
Tavernier is certainly one of those who will always look to go that extra mile for Rangers when it really matters and his ability to quickly put his mistake in the past and focus on the present is admirable.
That penalty said a lot about what he was thinking at the time as he thundered it in harder than most penalties in the history of the game.
He was fiercely determined to make amends and would not let any goalkeeper get anywhere near his spot-kick which was evident as Joe Hart sunk to his knees and watched the ball fly into the top corner.
More Rangers players need to follow the skipper’s lead in coming matches to keep Michael Beale’s good start at Ibrox going.
In other Rangers news, Barry Ferguson believes the Light Blues are keeping a close eye on this Premiership player after a sensational start to the season.