James Tavernier scored his 100th Rangers goal against Celtic; the Ibrox skipper joined the club in 2015 and led his side to the Scottish Premiership title in 2021 and Scottish Cup in 2022; Now he has joined an exclusive list of club legends to hit 100 goals for Rangers
Saturday 8 April 2023 20:57, UK
We have seen this before...
A rippling net leads to a chorus of cheers from the stands while the Rangers skipper indulges in a simple jump and a punch of the air before being swamped by his team-mates. If that does feel like a familiar sight for Rangers fans that is simply because it is - they have seen it 100 times now.
James Tavernier is a Rangers centurion.
The right-back, signed as a 23-year-old from Wigan in July 2015 for around £200,000, has wildly surpassed any expectations that may have been placed on him that summer.
Only third-choice goalkeeper Robby McCrorie remains from the squad that Tavernier joined under Mark Warburton eight years ago. The lows have been painful for the Englishman during his time in Govan, but the highs have been among the most euphoric experienced by anyone at the club in modern times.
The image of Tavernier hauling Rangers' first Premiership trophy in 10 years across the Ibrox surface surrounded by champagne-soaked ticker tape is already an iconic one. He lifted the club's first Scottish Cup in 13 years and was within a couple of kicks of becoming only the second Rangers captain to hoist a European trophy aloft.
Now, he has joined another unique club. He is the 19th Rangers player since the Second World War to score 100 goals for the club.
His strike and header against Celtic in his 394th appearance for the club further enhanced his claim to be a Rangers great. Others will win more trophies in years to come but few will be able to look back on their journey with the club the way Tavernier will, navigating a time of upheaval and adjustment at Ibrox.
Plenty of roads have been travelled since Tavernier scored that first goal against Hibernian in the first round of the Challenge Cup at Easter Road nearly a decade ago. Rangers will have no wish to compete in that tournament ever again but that 6-2 victory heralded a time of fresh hope for the club after false starts and chaotic governance on and off the pitch.
The major trophies finally started arriving nearly two years ago, even if stuttering progress before that was evident and maddening in equal measure for a fanbase that always wants success yesterday, no matter the circumstances.
Rangers struggled for consistency in their search for 55, even following the appointment of Steven Gerrard, but Tavernier's personal trajectory continued to climb throughout. He scored penalties, free-kicks and goals from open play. While it is accepted that modern football includes the use of advanced full-backs, there are few clubs anywhere in the world that boast their right-back as their talisman.
Alfredo Morelos joined the 100-club in October 2021 - a fine achievement, but he's a striker. The greatest ever Ranger John Greig scored 120 goals in 755 appearances for the club after starting his career in midfield. Derek Johnstone scored goals during stints at centre half but is better known as one of Rangers' greatest strikers.
Tavernier is famed more for his attacking prowess than his defending abilities and Rangers fans have become desensitised to seeing his name on the scoresheet to the point where it would be easy to take this record for granted.
But a defender's 100 goals cannot be dismissed so easily just because fans have become accustomed to them scoring. Tavernier's is an age in which Celtic have dominated and a sometimes-stymied Rangers side has struggled for killer goals to push silverware over the line.
So, how has Tavernier become a Rangers centurion?
So said Rangers' newest recruit in July 2015 after moving to Ibrox from Wigan. He joined the club as part of a double signing with Martyn Waghorn. At the time, it would be safe to assume that, of the two, it would be the forward who had a better chance of reaching 100 goals for his latest club.
Tavernier never shied away from getting forward and his first goal for Rangers at Easter Road five days after signing showed that he was more than capable from set pieces, but few could have expected his goalscoring return to be quite so lucrative, especially given the numbers in his career before the move to Glasgow.
A handful of Europa League and cup appearances for Newcastle - his first senior start in 2009 came in a side containing Haris Vuckic and Peter Lovenkrands - as well as five loan spells to a host of lower league sides in England, had failed to yield a first senior goal before a move to Rotherham in November 2013 saw him score just 48 hours after joining the Millers.
Tavernier's powerful finish will look familiar now, even if sight of the youngster cutting in from the left-hand side will not.
He scored five goals that season as Rotherham were promoted to the Championship after winning the play-off final at Wembley but made just 13 appearances after a permanent move to Wigan and found himself back out on loan again. Tavernier scored three goals in 13 appearances at Bristol City before a move north beckoned.
Tavernier took to Scottish football instantly - even if Rangers were still playing in the Championship. Mark Warburton was tasked with taking the club back to the top flight after a shambolic couple of years and establishing them at the top end of the Premiership once more.
He scored nine goals in his first 14 games at Ibrox as Rangers started well under Warburton. The Englishman then scored 15 goals as Rangers did secure promotion but the season would end in a disappointing Scottish Cup final loss to Hibernian after a memorable semi-final victory over Celtic.
The right-back started the following campaign in a similar fashion, scoring on the opening day of the season in the League Cup against Motherwell, but that would account for half of his goal tally all term.
Indeed, Tavernier scored once more in August and would not find the net again as Rangers endured a somewhat catastrophic return to the top flight, losing heavily to Celtic at Parkhead in September which set the tone for the season.
Warburton would be gone by March, with his successor Pedro Caixinha overseeing another 5-1 defeat to Celtic at Ibrox in April that would also cloud his short reign in Govan. Celtic would end the season as treble winners under Brendan Rodgers without losing a domestic game while Rangers finished third.
Tavernier would hit nine goals the following season but it would be one of turmoil again at Rangers, with Luxembourgian side Progres Niederkorn inflicting the club's most embarrassing European result on Caixinha and his team in the qualifying stages of the Europa League in July 2017.
The Portuguese would be sacked in October and, while Graeme Murty temporarily rallied the squad, heavy defeats to Celtic in April ensured that change was on the horizon at the club. Rangers again finished third.
The appointment of Steven Gerrard was a catalyst for Tavernier. He was appointed club captain by the new manager and started to thrive on the added responsibility. He added European goals to his collection, with strikes against Shkupi, Maribor and Rapid Vienna giving him a taste of the exploits that would lie ahead.
He hit 17 goals, including a first Old Firm strike in May, as Rangers improved but ultimately failed to win silverware under Gerrard. The skipper would score just three times the following season as Rangers struggled again in the lead up to the Covid shutdown of Scottish football. However, things were about to change.
That shutdown prompted a re-think at Ibrox. Staff used the time to re-evaluate and prepare the players for the return of football and a different kind of challenge. Tavernier and Rangers came out flying, with the Englishman notching 17 goals before the turn of the year.
Rangers would reach the knockout stages of the Europa League and win the Scottish Premiership for the first time in a decade unbeaten. Gerrard was full of praise for Tavernier after his crucial header against Galatasaray helped to seal Rangers' spot in the group stages in October 2020.
"When we turned up we knew we had the best right back in the league, and that's stayed the same," he told Rangers TV. "His consistency has been outrageous really. He's gotten stronger and stronger as the games go on.
"He's led his team to three European runs in succession, so he deserves a lot of credit. On the outside people make noise about James, but we know he's loved on the inside and we appreciate what he does.
"If he was the perfect full-back he probably wouldn't be here. The good thing is he's available all the time, he puts himself out there, and the numbers for a full-back, no matter what league or what level you're playing at, are outstanding."
He finished the season with 19 goals, including five in Europe. It was on this stage the following term that Tavernier really thrived. Gerrard's departure to Aston Villa in November would ultimately derail Rangers' title defence but Giovanni van Bronckhorst oversaw a Scottish Cup win and incredible run to the Europa League final.
Tavernier's seven Europa League goals all came in the knockout stages of the competition - including three against Borussia Dortmund - as Rangers came within a penalty shootout of European glory.
It was the captain's opening goals against Red Star Belgrade, Dortmund, Braga and RB Leipzig at Ibrox which set his side up for famous evenings under the lights in Govan. He would finish the season on 18, one shy of his total for the previous campaign and be named the Europa League's top goalscorer. Not bad for a defender.
Surpassing his exploits in the run to Seville would be a struggle but he would be Rangers' sole goalscorer in a hugely disappointing Champions League group stage campaign this season and had hit 15 goals by the middle of March.
His historic goals against Celtic were a culmination of his eight years at Rangers so far. Contracted past a testimonial season having signed an extension in August, Tavernier will celebrate reaching 100 goals but will be determined to breeze past that milestone while adding more trophies to his collection before his time at Ibrox is over.
Unsurprisingly the bulk of Tavernier's goals have come in the Scottish Premiership. In 234 appearances in the top flight the Rangers captain has scored 62 goals, with 38 coming from the spot.
A criticism of Tavernier is that he scores a lot from 12 yards - but they count as well. Big penalties in the league against the likes of Celtic, Aberdeen and Hibs cannot be taken for granted, while spot kicks against Borussia Dortmund, Braga and Red Star were crucial in the run to Seville.
Tavernier has missed his share of penalties but has taken responsibility for almost all of the high-pressure spot kicks Rangers have had since 2017, many of which have ensured big points or wins at home and abroad for the club.
He has scored 17 goals in Europe for Rangers, including Europa League and Champions League qualifying. Alfredo Morelos is currently Rangers' all-time leading scorer on the continent with 29.
As the last player still at the club to represent Rangers during their time outside of the top flight, Tavernier has 10 Championship and two Challenge Cup goals to his name, while also scoring six in the League Cup and three in the Scottish Cup.
His 100 goals have consisted of just six headers - including that vital one against Galatasaray in 2020 - and three with his left foot.
Aberdeen have been Tavernier's favourite opponent so far, with the 31-year-old bagging 12 goals against the Dons, with eight coming against Motherwell and seven against Hibernian and St Johnstone.
1. Goal No 1 - Hibernian, Challenge Cup, Easter Road, July 25, 2015
Tavernier had only signed for Rangers five days before that season opener in the Challenge Cup against Hibs on July 25, 2015 at Easter Road. Alan Stubbs's side would be Rangers' main rivals that season as both vied for promotion from the Championship but Mark Warburton's team put an early marker down with this thumping 6-2 win. The visitors were 1-0 down when Tavernier curled a brilliant free-kick into the top corner past Mark Oxley in the Hibs goal six minutes before half time.
2. Sunshine on Govan - Hibernian, Scottish Championship, Ibrox, August 23, 2015
Rangers made it three wins from three in the Championship under Warburton thanks to another outrageous free-kick from Tavernier. Positioned out on the far left, it looked as though he was shaped to cross before unleashing a curling shot into the far corner following a Lee Wallace stepover, again giving Oxley no chance.
3. Hampden stunner - Peterhead, Challenge Cup final, Hampden, April 10, 2016
Okay, so Rangers fans will not boast about their Petrofac Training Cup win under Warburton but this goal is one Tavernier has every right to hold close to his heart. Peterhead failed to clear their lines as the ball bounced about their box, allowing Kenny Miller to flick the ball back in the air to Tavernier who hit it first time on the volley into the top corner from about 25 yards. Regardless of the competition, that was a goal to savour.
4. First Old Firm goal - Celtic, Scottish Premiership, Ibrox, May 12, 2019
The title may have already been lost but Rangers' days of being brushed aside by Celtic were over under Steven Gerrard and they were keen to secure back-to-back wins at Ibrox over their Old Firm rivals for the first time in seven years. Two minutes in, Tavernier's whipped free-kick evaded everyone in the box and nestled in the net past Scott Bain to send Ibrox into raptures.
5. Doing it in Europe - Galatasaray, Europa League qualifying, Ibrox, October 1, 2020
Rangers had started the season well at home and abroad and a win over Galatasaray in a one-leg tie in Glasgow would secure passage to the Europa League group stages once again. Scott Arfield had opened the scoring but it was Tavernier's goal on the hour mark that sealed it. Borna Barisic's deflected cross hung up in the air and it was Tavernier, taking on the role of striker, who leapt highest to power his header into the net. A vital goal that secured European funds as fans were locked out of football stadiums.
6. Outrageous at Tannadice - Dundee United, Scottish Premiership, Tannadice, December 13, 2020
Rangers made it 27 games without defeat at Tannadice as their relentless march to the title continued in Dundee thanks to another magical set-piece from Tavernier. The skipper made it 1-0 - before later setting up Connor Goldson's winner - with a curling effort into the top corner from all of 35 yards. Benjamin Siegrist had no chance and Steven Gerrard called the finish "world class".
7. The man of the moment - Borussia Dortmund, Europa League knockout round play-off, Ibrox, February 24, 2022
Tavernier had already scored in Germany as Rangers stunned Borussia Dortmund 4-2 in the first leg of their Europa League knockout round play-off and he would do so again early in the return leg at Ibrox. But Dortmund, inspired by Jude Bellingham, would go into the break 2-1 ahead with nerves frayed around the stadium. Tavernier dispensed with those worries 12 minutes into the second half, pouncing on Calvin Bassey's cross to the back post to slam his effort past Gregor Kobel to restore Rangers' two goal advantage.
8. Bouncing back - Braga, Europa League quarter-finals, Ibrox, April 14, 2022
Rangers were 1-0 down following a lacklustre first-leg display in Portugal heading back to Ibrox but Tavernier's goal after just 70 seconds set his team on their way to the last four. Barisic's cross was flicked on by Joe Aribo and Tavernier beat the offside trap to slide in at the back post and guide the ball into the net. The noise around the stadium was deafening, with decibel levels rising again before half time when the skipper put his side ahead on aggregate from the spot as Rangers won 3-1 on the night.
9. Guess who at the back post - RB Leipzig, Europa League semi-finals, Ibrox, May 5, 2022
Once again Rangers found themselves 1-0 down heading back to Ibrox after a poor first leg showing in Europe and, once again, Tavernier's early goal wiped out the deficit on a raucous night in Glasgow. Ryan Kent slid the ball across the box after a driving run to find his captain at the back post to tap into the net. It wasn't one of his most memorable finishes as a Rangers player but it was certainly one of his most important. Rangers were on their way to Seville.
10. Derby day delight and despair - Celtic, Scottish Premiership, Celtic Park, April 8, 2023
A must-win fixture at the home of their rivals was the venue Tavernier would go onto reach that 100-goal landmark. It was an unstoppable first-half free-kick - perhaps one of his best - that moved him onto 99. The ball flew over the wall, past Joe Hart and in off the bar to silence Parkhead as Rangers drew level. Goal number 100 followed with a back-post header on the left but that personal delight of reaching a special landmark will be dampened by a 3-2 defeat that saw Celtic all but seal back-to-back league titles.
