Stats can make Tavernier look worse than he was

There’s been a lot of heat around Tavernier after the match, and it’s understandable when folk see a headline figure like “gave the ball away 19 times”. But the more you dig into the stats that are actually available early doors, the more it becomes one of those classic Rangers debates where numbers can be used to back up any side of the argument.

The team pass rate gives important context

The overall team pass success was quoted around the 79 to 80% mark. In other words, even on a decent passing night, the team is still giving it away roughly one in five. So if Tavernier’s “giveaways” are being framed as 21% of what he tried, that’s basically bang on the team average for losing possession.

That doesn’t mean he was flawless. It just means singling him out from that one number alone can be a bit misleading, because it ignores what the rest of the side were doing with the ball. Rangers build a lot down the right, and the right-back is often a key outlet, so he’ll naturally be involved in sequences where the ball turns over. That’s football. It happens.

The passes don’t even agree across sites

This is where it gets messy. One reading of the numbers suggests Tavernier attempted something like 90 passes out of a team total of 371, which would be a massive share for any player, never mind the right-back. It’s the kind of figure that makes you stop and go: did he really see that much of the ball?

Then you check elsewhere and you’re seeing 41 or 42 passes credited to him. If that’s the correct ballpark and the 19 misplaced figure is still being used, suddenly you’re talking about a completion rate only just over 50%, which is a totally different story. The point isn’t to “protect” anyone. It’s that the raw data in the first 24 hours can be all over the place, especially if you’re relying on the free stuff.

Tackles: not brilliant, but not a meltdown either

On the defensive side, the team numbers mentioned were 29 tackles attempted and 12 won, roughly 41% success. If Tavernier is sitting at 50% for his own tackles, then he’s actually above the team’s average in that specific area. Not something to hang the man of the match award on, but it matters when the narrative is “he offered nothing”.

And the big thing: it didn’t directly lead to goals, so I’m not in the “panic stations” camp off the back of one set of disputed figures. By all means criticise the performance if your eyes told you it wasn’t good enough. Just be careful about treating early, patchy stats as gospel, because they can be spun any way you like.

Written by Angus1812: 13 January 2026