Rangers skipper James Tavernier MUST start v Celtic on Sunday says Kris Boyd but Sterling can have key role for Gers too.

 

But Dujon Sterling can have a major role to play, too. Before Rangers’ draw with Tottenham, I thought James Tavernier had little chance against Celtic on Sunday. Now I don’t understand how the Ibrox captain could be dropped for the Premier Sports Cup final.

James Tavernier applauds the fans on Thursday nightCredit.

Daizen Maeda of Celtic sprints with the ball while being pressured by James Tavernier. For me, that meant starting Tavernier in Europe and using Dujon Sterling at right-back in the Old Firm final. But the Gers skipper was simply magnificent as Clement’s side put on their greatest performance of the season against the Premier League outfit. He put up Hamza Igamane’s goal and was solid against Timo Werner, Brennan Johnson, and Son Heung-min. When Dominic Solanke had a late chance to win it for Spurs, Tavernier made a crucial stop. We all know how this will end; he will leave Ibrox sooner rather than later.

But the Rangers captain had the best effort we’ve seen from him in a long time. Which brings us to Clement’s massive dilemma: can he really dismiss his captain for an Old Firm final after that? Yes, Daizen Maeda has had a lot of success against Tavernier in recent seasons, and Celtic will look to capitalise on that once more. But the Spurs did the same thing on Thursday night, and he stood up to it. Sterling is considered a more reliable alternative, but he will not provide the same level of service as Tavernier in the future. The Ibrox captain has two goals and two assists in his previous three games, and he appears to be back to his best.

Clement must find a way to stop Celtic’s strikers, but Rangers must also pose a threat, and Tavernier provides plenty of options moving forward. It’s a huge call for the Ibrox manager, and it will spark a heated debate among fans in the run-up to Hampden. The Maeda factor raises worries about Tavernier, yet he remains the club captain and a major impact. The projected absence of John Souttar is another reason why dropping the captain would be risky. I mentioned in my column last week that Souttar was one of the few leaders on the Gers squad right now. If he is absent for any period of time, it will be a blow for Clement as he is light on central defenders now.

Losing Souttar to injury and benching Tavernier would leave the Rangers short on big names for such a vital game. Could Sterling move inside alongside Leon Balogun instead of Robin Propper? Credit to the Dutchman for another impressive Europa League performance, but he has struggled domestically.

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