One thing that is abundantly clear is how much Rangers need a defensive refresh.
The only player at Rangers’ rearguard who has carried himself well is Tuur Rommens, while all central defenders have looked shaky and unreliable.
Dujon Sterling should play in defensive midfield, where he is best. However, he has done well in his secondary role at right back. James Tavernier is drifting out of the Rangers picture.
But centrally it’s looking uncertain.
John Souttar has struggled this season, with some errors and unconvincing defending.
For tackles he lies low in fourth at Ibrox, well behind Jayden Meghoma, for instance. But his interceptions are atrocious. Just 8 all season and way down the list. Clearances are his top suit, he’s number one there, with 137, but he’s also caused two shots on goal, which comes in second worst.
Emmanuel Fernandez has probably done a little better than Ibrox Noise certainly feared. Number one for interceptions, he’s number two for clearances. His aerial prowess easily the best part of his game. But with the ball at his feet most Rangers fans hold their breath in anxiety.
Nasser Djiga hasn’t really shone at Rangers. Despite his excellent CV his time at Wolves and now Ibrox suggests the Burkina Faso international doesn’t suit British football but his interception rate is second at Ibrox. His clearances are in third but well off the pace of Souttar and Fernandez. He has not gelled with any partner that Russell Martin or Danny Rohl gave him. He probably never fully recovered from his error v Braga.
Derek Cornelius is the outlier. We’re yet to really see what he can properly do, but his CV, like Djiga’s, is impressive.
Summary
We’re just not convinced by the pairings we’ve seen. The only one that hasn’t been tried is the one that on paper looks the best. Cornelius (a leftie) alongside Djiga (a rightie).
Djiga has not stunned many with his appearances, but he has frequently shown glimpses of his quality. He has not connected well with any of his partners.
Russell Martin especially kept him alongside Souttar when it was patently clear they couldn’t play together.
He has also struggled alongside Fernandez.
They did ok against Celtic in the cup quarter, in fairness to both. Rangers barely faced any trouble at the back. But then we rarely think we’ve seen a Celtic attack as impotent as that in an Old Firm.
Either way, Rangers have lacked a stick-on defensive partnership for probably decades. It’s a long time since Weir and Cuellar, and even the Bougherras seem a long time ago.
Fans remember Connor Goldson more fondly than he deserves today, while the one epic defender Rangers had, Leon Balogun, suffered injuries too often.
Since then it’s a conveyer belt of mediocrity, or players who don’t click at the back.
For a brief period this season Rangers started looking a bit more sure at the rearguard, but now it’s back to square one.
Seems unfair to pin all our hopes on Derek Cornelius, but what other choice do we have right now?