Swedish delight
When the announcement was made by Rangers via their official site that they had signed Karl Svensson from Swedish club IFK Gothenburg the news was greeted in a generally positive manner by the fans.
Swedish players are usually well rated, their national team tends to give a good account of themselves in tournaments, and Swedish players have historically excelled in British football. Particular examples would be Mellberg, Ljungberg, Linderoth, and of course arguably the most successful of all, Larsson.
So to the news Rangers had signed the captain of Gothenburg, a 22 year old Swedish international, fans were by and large pleased at the apparent quality obtained. Granted, few of them had even heard of the boy, but his pedigree was impressive.
Unfortunately, signs were there in pre-season of a fish out of water and a defender who was maybe not what the supporters had expected. Following on from this was his mediocrity in the SPL. He showed glimmers of occasional competence but by and large his displays were poor; by no means a ‘bombscare’ but chronically below the level expected of a club like Rangers, and it contributed towards a thoroughly flaky defence which suffered constant rotation due to Le Guen’s desire to find the best combination.
Svensson’s form continued to waver and some of the complaints levied at him were that his positioning was off, he was too slow and got turned too easily, and that he seemed to lack the heart for the likes of full blooded challenges. He did not seem to be imposing himself as a defender. The fans expected better, and before long he received the ultimate thumbs down from Le Guen who decided to drop him entirely to the bench.
This merely unsettled the backline yet further, and atrocious displays cost yet more goals.
He was recalled for the Hibs game at Easter Road and had his best performance in a Rangers shirt; this was the first sign of his renaissance. During this game Rodriguez had probably his worst game this season, and for some time. Surely this was a door being opened for Svensson.
Curiously, the Swede was left out again until the match in Tuscany V Livorno, when he put in a decently adept display. He never lost his place again. From here on in, his partner was Hemdani, a quiet and effective utility player, and this has worked ever since.
Svensson is currently flourishing for Rangers, continuing to improve and grow as a defender. He is a young boy who was taken out of his country and placed in an alien culture. It has taken a long time, but he has finally begun to reveal why Rangers invested in him, and his greatest hour was being effectively the best defender on display during the last Old Firm encounter.
His positioning, heart, tackling and even aerial ability have all tuned into the league, and suddenly he looks the real deal.
If he keeps up his current form, there is no reason to suggest he will ever be dropped again.
Swedish players are usually well rated, their national team tends to give a good account of themselves in tournaments, and Swedish players have historically excelled in British football. Particular examples would be Mellberg, Ljungberg, Linderoth, and of course arguably the most successful of all, Larsson.
So to the news Rangers had signed the captain of Gothenburg, a 22 year old Swedish international, fans were by and large pleased at the apparent quality obtained. Granted, few of them had even heard of the boy, but his pedigree was impressive.
Unfortunately, signs were there in pre-season of a fish out of water and a defender who was maybe not what the supporters had expected. Following on from this was his mediocrity in the SPL. He showed glimmers of occasional competence but by and large his displays were poor; by no means a ‘bombscare’ but chronically below the level expected of a club like Rangers, and it contributed towards a thoroughly flaky defence which suffered constant rotation due to Le Guen’s desire to find the best combination.
Svensson’s form continued to waver and some of the complaints levied at him were that his positioning was off, he was too slow and got turned too easily, and that he seemed to lack the heart for the likes of full blooded challenges. He did not seem to be imposing himself as a defender. The fans expected better, and before long he received the ultimate thumbs down from Le Guen who decided to drop him entirely to the bench.
This merely unsettled the backline yet further, and atrocious displays cost yet more goals.
He was recalled for the Hibs game at Easter Road and had his best performance in a Rangers shirt; this was the first sign of his renaissance. During this game Rodriguez had probably his worst game this season, and for some time. Surely this was a door being opened for Svensson.
Curiously, the Swede was left out again until the match in Tuscany V Livorno, when he put in a decently adept display. He never lost his place again. From here on in, his partner was Hemdani, a quiet and effective utility player, and this has worked ever since.
Svensson is currently flourishing for Rangers, continuing to improve and grow as a defender. He is a young boy who was taken out of his country and placed in an alien culture. It has taken a long time, but he has finally begun to reveal why Rangers invested in him, and his greatest hour was being effectively the best defender on display during the last Old Firm encounter.
His positioning, heart, tackling and even aerial ability have all tuned into the league, and suddenly he looks the real deal.
If he keeps up his current form, there is no reason to suggest he will ever be dropped again.
posted by RangersMedia @ 4:38 PM
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