Pundit shares 'Unique' reason he thinks Rangers man is struggling

Steven Thomson believes Robin Propper is “struggling” to adapt to life at Rangers due to the “unique” defensive situation he finds himself in at Ibrox.

Dutch centre-back Propper has come under fire after making a difficult start to life at Ibrox since joining from FC Twente in the summer and is part of a Gers side 11 points adrift of Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic.

Speaking on the Scottish Football Podcast (2 December), Thomson shared his thoughts on the situation currently surrounding the centre-back and suggested the difference of playing in a much higher defensive line may be contributing to his issues.

“I watched them against St Mirren, and I think he’s probably underestimated playing against stereotypical centre-forwards, you know, their hustle and bustle, their running [of the] channel,” he said.

“A lot of people say ‘come on that’s normal’ but you would beg to differ if you watched continental football and European football because sometimes centre-forwards are a bit more loose and it’s more technical.

“Whereas he’s having to use body contact, he’s in duels, he’s in fights, he’s having to scrap all the time.

“He’s also, which is probably a bit unique, for him that centre-halves for the Old Firm have to play on the halfway line so you have to leave yourself with 30, 40, 50 yards between you.

“I think he’s struggling to adapt at the moment, but I think if he’s a good player, which I think he is, he will adapt and learn.”

Philippe Clement needs to figure out who the best centre-backs at Rangers are

Since the start of the season, the Gers’ defensive line has been a bit of a thorn in the side of Philippe Clement.

While John Souttar is arguably having one of the best seasons of his career for club and country, it still feels like Rangers’ defensive line could do with shoring up.

The Gers got rid of Connor Goldson in the summer and replaced him with Propper and while many thought this was a good move, at the moment, it feels as if Clement has downgraded his ranks.

Fortunately for the Belgian, despite the poor form of the Dutchman, Leon Balogun has stepped up to the plate and formed a solid partnership with Souttar, but at the age of 36 years old, a more long-term solution will have to be sourced soon.

If Clement can get Propper back to his best, there’s no doubt that they’ll have a more than strong enough centre-back pairing to compete with Celtic, and it would also allow them to focus on strengthening other areas of their team.

In other Rangers news, an update has been shared on the Gers’ pursuit of Lawrence Shankland.

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