Ever since Gerrard has taken over at the club, he has tried to improve the depth and quality of the Rangers team. It is clear that he wants two top options for every position on the pitch. However, there is one area where the club has slightly struggled to recognise who is their best bet.
At left-back, we have three candidates fighting for first-team spot namely Andy Halliday, Jon Flanagan and Borna Barisic. The manager preferred Flanagan since the second half of last season, but Barisic might have turned the tide in his favour after some recent showings. The Croatian started in the all-important second leg clash against Legia Warsaw which indicates that he might be slightly ahead in the pecking order.
The defender scored a crucial free-kick against St. Mirren and Rangers managed to win that game narrowly by 1-0. That might have brought massive confidence boost to the player and Gerrard might go in with him for the future games. Barisic missed the clash against Celtic due to concussion, and we expect him to be back in the playing eleven after the international break.
Barisic on his relationship with Gerrard
Barisic though recently admitted that he has had problems with Gerrard. The fullback recently said (The National), ”I had some problems with him (Gerrard) because of my injury with Croatia, but that is behind us now. I will always be concentrating on Rangers first, and it will be that way for as long as I play with them.”
There were rumours in April that Gerrard has lashed out at certain players including Barisic. The Croatian later went on to claim that media blew things out of proportion, but there seems to be some truth to it now after Barisic’s recent admission.
Injury has been a real issue for the fullback, and Gerrard has indicated in the past that he needs to toughen up. After a friendly game against Helsinki in January this year, Barisic suffered an injury issue, and Gerrard had this to say, ”I don’t know, you’ll have to ask Borna (on the extent of the injury). He had me worried because he tapped the floor about 55 times. But I’m not sure. It looks he’s moving okay now.”
That is definitely a dig on the player as Gerrard almost mockingly mentions that the left-back tapped his foot 55 times.
Hopefully, everything is the past now as the defender says and Barisic can redefine himself in his second season at Ibrox. He has the ability and talent to thrive at this level, and all he needs to do is stay injury-free and play with consistency at the back.
