THERE are chapters as yet unwritten in the Rangers career of captain James Tavernier after the 30-year-old put pen-to-paper on a new deal that will keep him at Ibrox until 2026.

The free-scoring full-back could become the first Gers player since John Brown in 2001 to earn a testimonial, with Tavernier likely to surpass ten plus years in Glasgow after arriving as a fresh-faced 23-year-old under Mark Warburton in 2015.

Indeed, Tavernier has featured 347 times for the club across his seven years at Ibrox, averaging a remarkable 57 games per season. It means that the 30-year-old will surpass David Meiklejohn’s 563 appearances and become fifth on the list for all-time total appearances for the club by the end of his contract in 2026. Tavernier will be 34-years-old by that stage, with Sandy Archibald’s (580) and Ally McCoist’s (581) record in sight.

The captain could break the 400 appearances barrier next season, hitting 300 appearances in the 1-0 win over Dundee at Dens Park last term and the 200 mark in a goalless draw with Progres Niederkorn in Europa League qualifying in 2019.

Tavernier enjoyed his healthiest season in a Rangers shirt last term, with his 5,849 minutes on the pitch in all competitions the most that he has managed in his seven years at the club.

In total, Tavernier has netted 80 goals in his 300+ appearances for Rangers. The captain announced himself to the Gers support with a sumptuous free-kick against Hibernian at Easter Road on his competitive debut, and he has scored a further nine times from direct free-kicks. His last was perhaps the best of the lot, curling in a supreme effort from distance at Tannadice against Dundee United in December 2020.

Indeed, 16 out of his 17 total goals in the 2018/19 campaign – arguably his finest in a Rangers shirt – were from dead ball situations.

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Tavernier has been most prolific in games between the 46th and 60th minute, scoring 17 goals within that timeframe. More impressive, however, is the fact the 30-year-old has scored 20 game-winning goals for the club – goals that make it 1-0 or 2-0 in matches – with 20% of those coming against Aberdeen alone.

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Of his 80 goals in Rangers colours, only four have arrived from his forehead, scoring a pair of headers in the title-winning campaign of 2020/21. The full-back has also shown incredible consistency from the penalty spot, netting 37 penalties across his time at the club. The rest have typically been of the screamer variety, although only two have arrived with his weaker foot. Greenock Morton in 2015/16 and Hamilton Academical in 2020/21 have been the victims.

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The best goalscoring campaign of the Englishman’s Ibrox career (18 goals) arrived last season en route to the Europa League final, a competition where has both scored and assisted 15 times. However, his underlying goalscoring numbers suggest that he was most dangerous infront of goal in 2018/19 campaign, where he scored 17 goals from 16.85xG.

In the meantime, the 30-year-old reached a century of Rangers assists in the 4-2 win over Ross County at Ibrox last November – Steven Gerrard’s final game in charge – before adding a further six throughout the remainder of the season. In fact, last season proved Tavernier’s most creative year as Rangers player, ending the campaign with 20.19xA on 17 total assists.

Considering that a poor disciplinary record among the squad often undermined Gerrard during his first few years at the club, it is worth commending that Tavernier has never been sent off in his Gers career. 33 bookings have accumulated across the years – with only two in the 2018/19 – but it further underlines the model of consistency that the Rangers captain has been during his time at Ibrox.