Barry Ferguson has backed Borna Barisic to rediscover his best form for Rangers under new boss Michael Beale.
Barisic has been a key man at left-back since he arrived at Ibrox in 2018, but his drop in form last season has hampered him again this year, although a return to regular football has seen him begin to find his feet again, featuring in every league and Champions League game this season.
A nightmare performance in the 3-0 defeat at Celtic Park last season which saw him hooked off at half-time and was the beginning of a run of two starts in nine SPFL games, before reclaiming his place in the team after the split.
Whilst appearing on The Go Radio Football Show, Ferguson was asked whether his appearances in the World Cup for Croatia would be a big boost for his Rangers career, with the former Gers midfielder backing Barisic to come good again once he is back in Glasgow.
He said: “I do think going forward, he’s excellent, but he just looked to me a player low on confidence, like a number of the Rangers players. But hopefully, a new manager coming in, a new style of play, that’s when sometimes you see players get that extra boost, there’s no doubt Barisic has got really good qualities.”
TIF Thoughts on Ferguson’s comments…
Barisic’s first involvement in the World Cup saw him play the full 120 minutes in Croatia’s last-16 triumph over Japan in place of the injured Borna Sosa, and he certainly made the most of his chance – and may even continue at left-back in the quarter-final should the Stuttgart left-back not recover.
His Rangers form had also begun to return, with him averaging a 7.28 rating – the fourth-highest in the entire squad for players featuring in over 350 minutes – which is perhaps due to the team-high five assists he’s racked up in the Gers side, as per WhoScored.
Beale’s return could be the spark for the left-back who will hopefully thrive under the attacking license that the Englishman’s setup promises to bring.