Gary McAllister backs James Tavernier to continue as Rangers captain

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Rangers assistant manager Gary McAllister has backed James Tavernier to continue as Ibrox captain next season, despite calls from some Rangers fans to give the armband to someone else.

The Rangers right-back has come in for criticism from some sections of the Ibrox faithful, who feel Steven Gerrard should hand the Rangers captaincy to a player like Ryan Jack in the heart of midfield.

However, Rangers’ assistant boss has been speaking to The Times this weekend and made it clear that the current Ibrox captain has the backing of both him and Gerrard. 

“We trust the captain. He’s available the entire time. He’s set some very high standards in terms of goalscoring and assists. You look at his numbers and what he provides for us and he’s a key player. 

“You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to see where our game is built. He plays a massive part in that and I like that he takes on that responsibility. He’s a good captain.”

There is no doubt what Tavernier offers to Rangers. The Ibrox skipper is a massive attacking threat. The 28-year-old provided an impressive 15 assists this season, although his goal tally was down to three from 17 from the previous campaign. 

However, plenty of Rangers fans feel that Tavernier may not have the appropriate leadership qualities to be an Ibrox captain and that his place in the starting XI should also be under threat for some of his less than impressive defensive displays for Rangers. 

But it appears that Gerrard and McAllister are not currently willing to bow to any Rangers fan pressure to strip the right-back of his armband. Tavernier looks set to remain Rangers skipper for the 2020-21 campaign.