19 Aug 2026 16:46:30
Looking at some of the business this summer, I wonder if the biggest change isn't actually ability but athleticism.
For too long I've thought Rangers looked slow compared with teams that pressed us properly. Not necessarily slow players individually, but a slow team.
Penrice getting up and down the left, Gassama running at people, Dragojevic's energy and potentially Nedeljković on the other side gives the team a very different look.
Still think we need another winger with proper pace.
Anyone else think athleticism has been one of our biggest problems over the last few seasons?
19 Aug 2026 17:08:05
Totally agree we've been lightweight for too long. Yilmaz, Jefte, Tav used to all get target as slow and too small for headers at back post. Midfield has been lacking a 6ft plus monster for ages. Raskin, Barron, Dio, Cantwell etc all lightweight and not strong or quick. Also can't remember last time we had a quick no nonsense centre back. Balogun at a push.
19 Aug 2026 17:12:42
AB, I'd go as far as to say we have actually laced pace in players too, but 100% agree, just the pace at which the team plays has been really slow and turgid. Even this season so far, I still see lack of movement off the ball from a good majority of players, I call them gargoyles, because they just stand and watch.
Like the pace issue you refer to, look at Yokota these last few games. Been our danger player, and yet we take forever to actually get the ball to him, hopefully our general speed of play picks up.
19 Aug 2026 17:25:37
Would like a striker with a bit of pace.
19 Aug 2026 17:25:59
Tav wasn't small, he was 6 foot.
19 Aug 2026 17:34:42
Jefte was definitely not slow and he wasn't small either. Tav was also not small and both were good in the air.
It's not their height why they'd be caught out at the back post.
19 Aug 2026 17:37:57
Might have been 6ft, but was slow getting back. Would get caught switching off and ball watching at back post. And, wouldn't fancy him in an aerial duel.
19 Aug 2026 18:15:09
Tav's aerial duels won 52.7%. In Europe, this drops to 48%. In the EPL, for example, the average rate for a FB is 42%. Tav was good in the air for a FB, particularly as an out ball against his direct opponent higher up the pitch.
He was not a traditional right back, he was a modern attacking FB. Whether you like that or not, we must take that into consideration when looking back at his career.
19 Aug 2026 18:24:36
Tav had a great career at us. His goal scoring record and assists speak for itself. Just like a lot of people don't think he was great defensively, and was a weak point other managers used to target, especially last few years when his pace went.
He might have won his fair share of headers, but point I was making was he used to switch off or get caught under the ball, or not see a man coming in behind him. Just my opinion.
19 Aug 2026 22:28:52
The team have lacked attacking fullbacks in the last couple seasons, probably going back to when Barasic first arrived and Tav was at his peak, marauding up and down the touchline, overlapping with wingers, crosses into the box, assists etc.
It made such a difference in how we set up.
Lately, I feel we were just getting the ball to our wide players and expecting them to produce something all the time.
Hopefully that will change now with the arrival of Penrice and Nedeljkovic.
19 Aug 2026 23:40:07
Our fullbacks get caught out mostly because they're playing so high up the pitch. Tav would be charging up and the ball would get turned over by an interception or a slack pass, then it looked like he was slow to get back. He was slow last year though.
20 Aug 2026 07:58:02
Every manager changes the set up and players to play that. Some didn't have out and out wingers, some wanted to play out from the back, possession based, speed wasn't the criteria.
So it's by design we have what we have.