Neil Lennon has highlighted one key battle on the pitch in Sunday’s Glasgow Derby League Cup final, where historically, the Hoops have come out on top.
Time and time again, Daizen Maeda has frightened Rangers captain James Tavernier with the Japanese winger’s world-class pressing ability, giving the Englishman little time on the ball, something he has struggled with spectacularly.
The clearest example of this is Maeda’s opener at Ibrox last season, where in pressing Tavernier, the Englishman attempted a pass that deflected off Maeda straight into the Rangers’ net, just 21 seconds into the Glasgow Derby, with Lennon highlighting just how much Maeda dominates Tavernier in the fixture.
He said: (The Warm Up), “It’s a conundrum for him, but there’s no doubt he has struggled against Maeda. Maybe they need to look at overloading that side to stop it. I don’t know how you would do that; maybe get another midfielder over to give him that bit of protection.
“He keeps getting done on his far post. The amount of times Celtic go down the right hand side and cut it back. Maeda is first to the ball to get the first contact and score. James should be better than that, maybe that’s a psychological thing.”
Whether it’s Maeda peeling off Tavernier to score from crosses into the box or knocking the ball past him to put in a cross, Maeda is able to do as he pleases against Tavernier.
Meanwhile, the Englishman’s attacking threat is consistently nullified in the Glasgow Derby.
While Tavernier is known for his crosses and goals against the rest of the league, against Celtic, however, he is unable to have the same success, with much of the credit going to Maeda for his pressing and ability to track back.
Psychologically speaking, Maeda is in Tavernier’s head due to his work rate.
Tavernier is not given anytime on the ball; Maeda is constantly willing to press, and this is something the Rangers captain simply can’t handle.
In his mind, it means he second-guesses himself over what to do when he gets the ball, an issue he doesn’t face against the rest of Scotland.
