Scott

Slave to money, then you die..

[Empire ✶ ✶ ✶ ✶ @Empire1872]

Best one yet. Lost it when Strachan turns up 😂😂😂😂

[adidas UK @adidasUK]

CHOOSE SCOTLAND 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏆

@ScotlandNT @LewisCapaldi

[Scotland’s Coefficient @scotlandscoeff1]

John McGinn specs!

3D printed by a company in Uddingston.

Message me know if you want their details to get your own pair, collection only.

£15

[Scott @scottd78]

@ScotlandNT @FIFAWorldCup Gutted for him 💔😭

[Scott @scottd78]

@SkyFootball 😭💔

[Scott @scottd78]

@STVNews 🤯🙈

[Sky Sports Scotland @ScotlandSky]

Celtic should not have been awarded the match-winning penalty away to Motherwell, say the Scottish FA's key match incident panel. More ⤵️

https://t.co/CSkP8KDR2q

[Henry Winter @henrywinter]

Celtic’s penalty was certainly a debatable decision. Impossible to be definitive either way, hence current widespread inquest, so they really should have stayed with original on-field. No pen. Understandable anger amongst Motherwell and Hearts coaches, players and supporters.

Hearts now travel to Celtic Park for a title decider. The Foundation of Hearts, which owns 75% of the club, has called “on those responsible for the officiating of Saturday’s match to ensure that the highest standards of decision-making are applied, so that the game is decided by the players on the pitch and the team is given the fair opportunity it has earned”. Strong words.

North and South of the Border the quality of officiating - and consistency – has been questioned this season. The problem is not the technology but those using it. There are some very competent officials about. But more are needed.

Whether the Fir Park hand-ball was the worst decision ever is a moot point. Here are a few that spring immediately to mind, clear-cut mistakes, bound to trigger some frustrated flashbacks, in no particular order…. Diogo Dalot on Jeremy Doku, somehow only a yellow. Michael Keane on Doku, somehow only a yellow. Jordan Pickford taking out Virgil van Dijk. Harry Kane foot up on Andy Robertson. Tomas Soucek stopping a shot from Conor Gallagher with his hand. Rodri hand-ball against Everton.

On it goes. Elliot Anderson on Ollie Watkins, cleared on review, mad. Kelechi Iheanacho denied a goal for Celtic against Braga when VAR ruled he’d handled when the ball came off his cheek. Gabriel not being dismissed for lowering his forehead into Erling Haaland. Luis Diaz punished for a non-existent offside when scoring for Liverpool against Tottenham.

Lee Mason left his VAR job “by mutual consent” and PGMO apologised after he failed to draw the lines and spot Christian Norgaard offside in the build-up to Ivan Toney scoring for Brentford, costing Arsenal two points. And many others.

The problem isn’t the technology; it’s the people using it, with the additional issue in Scotland of whether there is sufficient investment in the technology infrastructure. VAR is the safety net - but currently with too many holes.

[Let's Talk Rangers @LetsTalkGers]

Danny Rohl when Andreas Skov Olsen turns up for pre-season training with Wolfsburg.

[Sky Sports Premier League @SkySportsPL]

Mo Salah watches on as players and managers pay homage to him ❤️

Full video out tomorrow 🍿

[Scott @scottd78]

@gandwcity @cfcjoe1888__ Yes it's getting boring now, but the timing of this exclusion is more the point. Yes both fans have been out of order, I think one side more than the other. But rather than points scoring it needs to be resolved. It now comes down to sporting integrity, the SFA will decide, sadly

[Tochi Phil Chukwuani @TChukwuani_]

🎯🤣

[Scott @scottd78]

@James_Tavernier @RangersFC Thank you Tav for everything, just one last wee favour plz before you go 🏆🤞❤️🤍💙

[James Tavernier @James_Tavernier]

Thank you @RangersFC 💙

[Football on TNT Sports @footballontnt]

Of course, it's James Tavernier! 💪

The Rangers captain making supporters dream inside Ibrox! ❤️

#UEL

[Doug @theGlimmerTwin]

Here’s the thing though, almost everything you hit upon has only amplified in the past couple of years as Tav has gotten older.

He was never consistently talked about as our “worst player” against Celtic until he was up against Maeda on a regular basis because he had him beat for pace. Even then, Maeda wasn’t even that successful against him until the last couple of years when Tav’s legs went and Maeda improved. The opposite was true, Tav was the one player whom the honest Celtic fan worried about because he more than anyone actually created and scored goals against them.

This idea he can’t defend has also grown arms and legs in the last couple of years as he’s declined. Yes, it’s always been a fact he’s been a much greater attacking force than a defensive one. But for the majority of his career his pace and power meant he was a perfectly decent defender. He has been at times statistically the best defender in Europe. He led a defence that set a record for least goals conceded in the league ever. He has consistently been the best RB in the league based on his defensive stats alone, at one point being described as ‘perhaps the most dominant player in his position, in his league, anywhere in the world’.

To be clear, even citing all that I’m not making the case that he’s a defensive great, that’s never been his game. But this idea he “can’t defend” simply doesn’t stand up to scrutiny over the majority of his career.

Kompany was constantly mocked for being a weak link at City because of his injury issues. There’s a Reddit thread on r/ManchesterUtd from about 4 months ago asking if Fernandes is Man Utd’s worst ever captain for all the same reasons people ask the question of Tav.

To captain a club with a winning history during a period where they aren’t winning will always have that effect.

This idea Tav has lowered standards is just a non-starter. If truly removing all personal opinion and bias and simply looking at his individual achievements, they rank up there alongside almost any Rangers great. Almost 300 Goal Contributions in 11 years from any player is amazing. That’s an average of 27 per season. An average of 51 games played per season over the course is also outstanding, especially against the backdrop of injury problems we’ve had in recent years with key players. Tav is going to end his career as one of our all time appearance holders. Domestically, in Europe and overall.

Obviously there’s the run to Seville where he was Top Scorer in the Tournament, but not just that, he’s led a period of sustained European success for the club. Multiple other records he’s notched from previous great players, precisely because he’s been one of the few players who has maintained a Rangers standard despite what’s been around him.

The sad part is that these last two years especially have seen people fall into this trap of cascading his more recent issues across his career. Emphasising defensive frailties, focusing on the lack of team success. Through it all Tav has never hidden though. He is always there ready to put on the shirt. He hasn’t kicked off when dropped or spat his dummy. He’s just kept working. If he’s been here too long that’s on the club for not replacing him when they should have. Even this season he’s still scoring goals, still hitting his creative numbers… and still was statistically the best RB in the league for at least a period. Even at his worst he finds ways to contribute and he has helped save a number of key points in games this season.

His time at the club is winding down, and it will always be an * on his career that he didn’t win more trophies at a club that defines itself by trophies won. But in time people will look back on his career with gratitude and amazing memories. Because if one thing is undeniably true, almost every moment of major success we’ve had in the past decade, he’s invariably played a major part it in.

[Scott @scottd78]

@IainMitchell17 Tbf we have done ok with wingers on loan, Sima, Cerny, Moore.. Sima too many injuries, Cerny too high wages. I think next season Curtis can do well and a left wing loan 👍💪🤞

[The Rangers Review @RangersReview55]

🗣️"When Tav's not there, you will be the first ones to be saying 'if only we had Tavernier back!'."

Mark Warburton worked with James Tavernier every day and has zero doubts about his Rangers credentials.

📺 https://t.co/Nsb0D1O2Dt

[Football on TNT Sports @footballontnt]

HAKAN ÇALHANOĞLU TAKE A BOW 🤯

Amazing strike from the Turk puts Inter back in front against Roma 🚀

📺 Live on TNT Sports & HBO Max