Rangers manager Pedro Caixinha has heaped heavy praise on defender Ross McCrorie for his display in the Old Firm derby on Saturday afternoon.
The 19-year-old participated in his first ever match against bitter rivals Celtic in only his second competitive outing for the club.
The visitors would come away with the spoils thanks to second-half strikes from Tom Rogic and Leigh Griffiths to seal a comfortable 2-0 win at Ibrox.
The defeat means that the Gers have failed to win an Old Firm derby in 90 minutes since the 2011-12 SPL campaign.
McCrorie was selected alongside summer signing Fabio Cardoso in the heart of the defence in replacement of veteran Bruno Alves and the teenager looked unfazed throughout his home senior debut.
As quoted in the Scottish Sun, Caixinha was quick to single out the youngster as one of the best performers in a blue shirt on the day.
“He is a player I don’t have doubts about,” he said.
I like Ross a lot and he did really well.
“He didn’t shake, he didn’t fail the test. That’s his mentality. He did his job.”
OPINION
It’s fair to say that McCrorie put on a very disciplined performance for a player who was taking part in his first ever Old Firm clash. The teenager should be proud of his own display but he needs to be protected by the the experienced heads in the squad in order to keep his head down and improve as a player. With Alves set for a spell on the sidelines, the youngster is likely to be given a consistent run in the starting eleven and he looks like he can be one for the future. He is bound to have learnt a lot from yesterday’s defeat and with his manager’s backing, he could potentially have a key role to play for the remainder of the campaign.