James Tavernier feared Old Firm games were going to be the death of him during his first few painful derby experiences. But the Rangers captain insists he learned to keep a lid on the emotions and he’s out to prove today his side are still alive and kicking in the Premiership.
Tavernier is a veteran of 27 of these dust ups now. His record of eight wins, 17 losses and two draws might not make the best of reading but in there was a run of eight without defeat on the way to wrestling the title back to Ibrox and killing Celtic’s 10-in-a-Row bid. There have also been a couple of sore ones in recent seasons though, with 3-0 and 4-0 reverses leaving a mark on the Light Blues.
But Tavernier has learned to roll with the punches and he admitted the encounter doesn’t fill him with the same sense of dread it did in the past. He said: “I’d say, especially in the first few games, you hear all the noise around the game and you don’t really know what to expect, so you build it up as the absolute biggest game. If you lose you feel like you are going to die.
“It is one of those you never want to lose regardless. It’s something that I’ve been able to control over the years.
“The emotions can affect a lot of it because tactics can go out the window when the game starts. It becomes about who can put their stamp on the game – the first headers, tackles. It’s about being controlled, not relaxed, with the way you are playing.
“I’ve experienced a lot of it. It probably hurt more in the early days because the results weren’t there for a long period of time. Then as the squad got stronger and stronger and we felt that we could get the results.
“It was obviously better but you never like losing, no matter what. We have got to come into Monday full of confidence, which we are, and start with a clean sheet. We have got to be solid defensively and set the tempo of the game.”
Tavernier knows Rangers can’t get caught cold like they were at Celtic Park in September, when Celts swept them aside in the 4-0 win.
The captain didn’t pull his punches when it came to that game and he is determined to make amends today. He said: “The performance that we put up at Parkhead wasn’t good enough at all and it is obviously something we need to rectify.
“I think it is always important – if you lose a game, as long as you have left everything on the pitch. The League Cup Final (in 2019), for instance – we left everything out on the pitch and lost by a penalty kick. You never want to lose but you can walk away from the game saying you have done everything possible.
“I think the game at Parkhead, we didn’t do everything possible as a team that I know we can do. Those are the ones that hurt more because you know there is more to give.
“Even though you want to give everything on the day, if things don’t click together then there is always a sense that the performance wasn’t good enough. That is obviously a good thing to see because we have more to give and hopefully everything goes together really well on Monday.”
There are some who reckon Celtic are a shoo in this lunchtime. The bookies have made Ange Postecoglou’s side favourites and not many fancy Gers to cost them a few quid.
Tavernier doesn’t see it that way though. Sure, it’s been a bumpy season so far but the Light Blues have reeled off four wins on the spin under new boss Mick Beale and shown plenty of fight in the process.
It is also not so long ago Gers were rampaging across the continent, leaving the likes of Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig in their wake on the way to the Europa League Final.
Tav wants to tap in to those memories today and breathe life in to the Premiership title race. He said: “Six or seven months ago we were in a European final and we have only lost a few players out of that squad. We have got more players in the squad so we know the heights that we can get to.
"Recently we have shown a real grit and determination to go into games and get the wins that we needed. We have shown different ways of winning and that is really pleasing to see – that we have got that real grit that we showed when we won the league.
“That season we showed different ways of winning and we have got that back in our play. It is good to see. We have got to take every ounce of experience into a game like this and apply it.”
The rewards are clear. Celtic have a hefty advantage at this stage but a six point gap with just under half of the season to go would not be insurmountable – especially with a couple of Old Firm games still to come.
Tavernier is hoping this one can kick-start a charge. He said: “There are a lot of points to play for. We obviously want to get the win.
"We know there is a gap so we know it is important to get the points that we need. There are a lot of games to play and we will go to the last game of the season wanting to win every single game. That’s the minimum.”
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