Latest reports from the Daily Mail suggests that Premier League outfit Brighton and Hove Albion are set to target Rangers captain James Tavernier to strengthen their right back options at the club. The 26-year-old fullback is an essential player in Steven Gerrard’s setup and also happens to be the club captain so the Gers would be extremely unwilling to sell.
On top of that, the captain signed a new contract in September which would keep him at the Ibrox for another four years. However, all this is not deterring the Seagulls in their pursuit as the club sent scouts to watch him in action against Rapid Wien in the Europa League tie.
After what they would have seen, their estimation about the quality of the player might have soared further as Tavernier was an influential man on the pitch and scored a critical penalty late on in the game to give the Gers a lead.
This is not the first time that Tavernier has drawn interest from Premier League/Championship clubs as earlier Swansea City were also monitoring his situation. Along with them, another Championship outfit West Bromwich Albion were also in the race to sign him in the summer. It was reported then that Gerrard was set to demand £7m for the 26-year old right back.
Nothing materialised at that time. However, a Premier League outfit might be a different proposition, and the player’s head might turn. Tavernier is an Englishman so playing in the English top flight might be his dream.
The right-back started his senior football career with Newcastle United, but he failed to make the cut there and had various loan spells in lower divisions of England before he made his name in Glasgow.
Tavernier is a typical modern-day fullback as he looks to pounce forward at every opportunity and he is always threatening with his crosses and overlapping runs. The former Wigan Athletic player has a mean right foot and is often on set-piece duties for the club. However, there have been complaints of him being defensively vulnerable but such is the game today that a manager would rather take an attacking fullback over a defensive one.
It would be interesting to see whether Brighton would be willing to meet the valuation of Tavernier. A £7m offer might be too good to refuse for the Gers and the player so one cannot count anything out at the moment. Brighton showed great ambition in the summer window as they spent close to £65m and signed as many as ten players in the window. Therefore one can’t say that Brighton doesn’t have the financial prowess to match Rangers’ valuation. The Gers have cover in the form of Jon Flanagan who can play as a right back, so there is every possibility of this move going through if there is a right offer on the table.
