Glasgow Rangers have not been good enough defensively, in the Scottish Premiership or in Europe, since Russell Martin took the job on in the summer.
The Light Blues have conceded six goals in six games in the league, gave up 3.79 xG to Genk in the Europa League, and lost 9-1 to Club Brugge on aggregate in the Champions League play-off.
This shows that the Scottish giants have coughed up far too many chances for opposition teams across all competitions, and that something has to change if the head coach wants to turn the season around and achieve success and, hopefully, trophies.
Livingston’s goal against the Ibrox giants in the 2-1 win for Martin’s team on Sunday, their first win of the season in the League, was another example of sloppy defending in the box by the Gers.
Whilst it was an excellent delivery into the box, John Souttar got caught under the flight of the ball and was not close enough to Mo Sylla to put him off his header, which allowed the forward to score.
The club’s struggles in the defensive third this season suggest that Martin needs to unearth his own version of Connor Goldson, who was pivotal to the success of the last Gers team that won the league.
Why Rangers need to find their next Connor Goldson
The Light Blues need to find their next version of the impressive centre-back at Ibrox because their defence has been questionable since his incredible form in the 2020/21 campaign.
Steven Gerrard led the Ibrox giants to the title in that season and his team was built on solid foundations with the former Brighton & Hove Albion brute at the heart of the defence.
Points
102
1st
xG
69.2
1st
Goals
92
1st
xA
18.8
1st
Goals conceded
13
1st
Clean sheets
26
1st
Losses
0
1st
As you can see in the table above, Rangers had an unbelievable defensive record with the English titan at the back in that season, conceding just 13 goals in 38 matches.
Goldson, playing as the right-sided centre-back, was an incredibly dominant central defender in that campaign, winning 68% of his ground duels and 72% of his aerial duels, per Sofascore.
His dominance at the back for the Scottish giants helped the team to remain solid and hard to break down, which was one of the main reasons why they won the title that season.
The Gers need their next dominant and reliable centre-back to lead the backline, as Goldson did in their last title success, and they may have their next version of the giant in the making, but it is not Derek Cornelius.
The Rangers star who is the next Connor Goldson in the making
Rangers swooped to sign Cornelius on loan from Marseille in the summer transfer window, and he showed some promising signs against Livingston by winning four of his seven duels, per Sofascore.
It was his defensive partner, Souttar, who was to blame for the goal that was conceded, as evidenced in the earlier clip, whilst the loanee made five clearances, two interceptions, and one tackle.
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However, the Canada international lost 67% of his duels against Genk in the Europa League and is a left-sided centre-back, which means that he is unlikely to be the next Goldson from a physical or positional perspective.
The lesser-seen Emmanuel Fernandez, however, may have the potential to eventually develop into being the club’s new version of Goldson, as a towering and physical presence in the right-sided centre-back position.
Rangers signed the English starlet from Peterborough United, in a deal that was described as a “blockbuster” move by Posh chairman Darragh MacAnthony, but he has only played two matches in all competitions to date.
Fernandez’s only appearance in the Premiership to date came in the 1-1 draw with St Mirren in August. There were positives and negatives to take from his performance alongside John Souttar in that match.
Appearances
1
6
Tackles + interceptions per game
4.0
1.5
Clearances per game
9.0
5.0
Dribbled past per game
0.0x
0.8x
Duels per game
12
5.3
Ground duel success rate
63%
48%
Aerial duel success rate
100%
60%
As you can see in the table above, the physical qualities that the 23-year-old star displayed in that draw with St Mirren were particularly impressive, especially when you consider that Souttar has lost the majority of his ground duels this season.
These statistics suggest that the towering English youngster has the physical profile to replicate Goldson’s dominant defending, which Souttar has been unable to do in the Premiership so far this term.
However, Fernandez did leave a little bit to be desired with his use of the ball, failing to complete a single long pass, and looked a bit too relaxed in possession against the Saints, which may be why that is his only appearance in the league to date.
At the age of 23, the youngster still has plenty of time left to make a success of his career at Ibrox. He may not be playing at the moment, but his defensive and physical numbers against St Mirren show that he has the potential to be a dominant defender for the Gers.
With Cornelius coming in on the left side of the defence, where Leon Balogun used to partner Goldson, Fernandez could compete with Souttar to start in the right-sided centre-back role as the Gers look to find solutions to their faltering defence this season.
The defence has not been good enough under Martin, that much is obvious, and the summer signing from Peterborough has shown some signs that he could be the dominant defender that they need.
Therefore, the right-sided defender could be the next Goldson in the making at Ibrox if Martin is able to help him take the next step in his development to be a regular starter for the Light Blues in the future.
It is now down to Fernandez to show the manager, whenever he is given a chance to prove his quality on the pitch, that he can be relied upon as a regular starter to solve the club’s defensive issues this season.