Rangers: Scottish media slam Ben Davies after ‘clumsy’ performance despite victory v Real Betis
Scottish media outlets have hit out at Ben Davies after his disappointing performance despite Rangers’ 3-2 victory against Real Betis in the Europa League on 14 December.
The defender was at fault for Betis’ second equalising goal in the first half as his loose touch allowed the Spanish side to capitalise and keep the pressure on, in what was potentially a disastrous moment.
Had Kemar Roofe not found the winner, Philippe Clement’s side would have crashed out of the Europa League at the earliest opportunity, and Davies would have been at fault.
The Daily Mail [14 December, pg 61] labelled Davies “unconvincing” as they wrote: “Often unconvincing at the heart of the defence. Gave the ball away at Real’s second goal.”
Similarly, Football Scotland also hit out based on that moment, as they wrote: “The ex-Liverpool defender’s inclusion ahead of John Souttar was questionable and Betis took advantage of his clumsy touch from a high ball which led to Perez’s leveller.”
Glasgow World then got in on the act, ranking the performance at a 6/10 before sharing: “Named ahead of Souttar in central defence but was at fault for Perez’s equaliser after taking a heavy touch and losing possession.”
Lastly, Glasgow Live joined the rest in focusing on his mistake, also rating him a 6/10 and sharing: “The man chosen to fill in for Leon Balogun. Fighting to get a regular spot in the side. Slack touch in the build-up to Betis’ leveller. One disappointing moment in an otherwise solid performance.”
One disappointing moment
As the final line from Glasgow Live suggests, the lapse in judgement and heavy touch which led to the Betis equaliser was the one really bad moment of his game in what was otherwise a solid, if unremarkable, performance from the Rangers man.
However, it was an error that almost saw the Glasgow side eliminated from Europe after going ahead twice in the game, which is something that they could not afford given the financial benefits that come from playing in Europe.
It is, of course, the mistake that draws the focus of the media. In such an important game for the club, the defenders simply can’t afford to make mistakes of that magnitude, and while he got away with it on this occasion, he may not have been so lucky another time.
Leon Balogun was missed for this game, and the inclusion of Davies over Souttar was questioned and will continue to be depending on who Clement decides is his preferred option going forward based on last night’s showing.
In other Rangers news, Ally McCoist couldn’t believe what he saw v Real Betis.