Glasgow Rangers showed immense resilience in a crucial Scottish Premiership showdown as they fought back to secure a hard-earned 3-3 draw against their bitter rivals at Ibrox over the weekend.

After finding themselves trailing 2-0 at halftime following goals from Daizen Maeda and Matt O’Riley, Philippe Clement’s team mounted a spirited comeback in the second half. James Tavernier converted a penalty, and Abdallah Sima scored a deflected goal to level the score. However, Adam Idah quickly put the visitors ahead again. In a dramatic twist, Rabbi Matondo’s stunning stoppage-time goal salvaged a point for Rangers in this high-stakes encounter.

Despite their impressive fightback, Rangers failed to capitalize fully on the occasion, leaving them to play catch-up with Celtic for the remainder of the 2023/24 season in the title race.

Several Rangers players delivered underwhelming performances, with captain James Tavernier notably struggling. Following an error-strewn display against Celtic, Tavernier has come under scrutiny and could face being dropped ahead of the upcoming match against Dundee, a bold decision that would send a strong message.

Tavernier’s early mistakes set the tone for Rangers’ lackluster performance, with his errors resulting in crucial moments that benefitted Celtic. Although he redeemed himself with a well-taken penalty, it was not enough to overshadow his overall poor showing.

Jonny McFarlane of RangersReview criticized Tavernier’s performance, labeling it as “shocking” and awarding him a modest 5/10 rating. The Englishman’s lack of sharpness both defensively and offensively was evident throughout the game.

Clement faces a tough decision in potentially benching Tavernier to set a benchmark for performance standards within the team. Dujon Sterling could be slotted in at right-back in place of Tavernier, with Borna Barisic or Ridvan Yilmaz stepping in on the left flank, should he be unavailable. This bold move would signal that no player, regardless of status, is exempt from accountability and that lackluster performances will not be tolerated, especially during the crucial stages of the title race.