‘Everyone was at it to a man in the second half… That is what we’ll need in Portugal’

James Tavernier believes Rangers’ second-half showing against Braga proves what the Ibrox side are capable of ahead of tomorrow night’s second leg in Portugal.

James Tavernier celebrates after Rangers' 3-2 win over Braga at Ibrox

The evidence of that performance, specifically the final 25 minutes or so, is particularly helpful to have after Rangers reverted to their bad old ways against St Johnstone on Sunday. Another bright period following half-time was undone when they allowed the hosts back into the game in Perth, courtesy of Stevie May’s equaliser with ten minutes left.

Tavernier was impressed with Braga last week but saw enough to feel confident Rangers can hurt them on their own turf. In order to do this, they will be required to ask more questions of the hosts. Defending from the front could be key since it will also help relieve pressure on the under-performing Rangers rearguard.

“We didn’t really get in their faces like we believed we could have done (in the first half) but we changed that second half and we closed them down,” said Tavernier. “As soon as we got the smell of blood, we jumped right on it and got great goals to come back into it.

“They were still a very good team going forward and they are definitely up there with the best teams that we have played,” he added. “That was evident before the game when you look at how well they have done in their league recently.

“We let them create problems for us in the first half. You could see they are a very good team at finding pockets and passing the ball forward. As soon as we got in their faces, we were able to make it more difficult for them.”

As a member of Rangers’ currently under-fire backline, Tavenier knows the spotlight will be on him and his defensive colleagues. Borna Barisic is in a battle to be fit for the second leg, which gives manager Steven Gerrard another potential headache. Andy Halliday filled in at left back but was replaced at half time against St Johnstone as Gerrard chose to throw on another striker in Florian Kamberi, who looks set to start tomorrow in place of the suspended Alfredo Morelos. Kamberi’s mobility will be a useful asset in the Braga Municipal Stadium.

Nikola Katic’s prospects of featuring look bleaker after his error-strewn performance against Perth. Former Rangers striker Kris Boyd described his display as the worst he had seen from a Rangers defender when analysing the game for Sky Sports. Gerrard later admitted he needed Swedish centre half Filip Helander back fit “sharpish”.

Helander has not played since injuring his foot in the Betfred Cup final defeat against Celtic. Gerrard’s last update saw the player slated to make a comeback either the end of this month or start of next month. He won’t be able to help tomorrow night, that’s certain.

The situation has become critical after Rangers threw away more points against St Johnstone. Katic failed to deal with a headed flick forward from May to allow Callum Hendry to open the scoring. His poor clearance later in the match gave May the chance to equalise after Rangers had manoeuvred themselves back into a winning position.

It doesn’t matter whether they are in Perth or Portugal, Rangers won’t get away with such slack defending. They are likely to be under the cosh for prolonged periods tomorrow night. Tavernier is taking heart from how they reacted to going 2-0 down at Ibrox last midweek.

“We will need that kind of second half performance over there and we will need to get after them and close them down,” said the captain. “But we did concede in the second half. We can’t afford to do that over there.

“We will have to be tighter as a unit and as a team and stop them scoring, especially goals in the manner of the second one. We will learn from that and look at it. We can certainly go into it with confidence. We will have that belief that we can create chances, but we need to give the front lads that opportunity and give them a good foundation.

“We know that when everyone is at it then we can be a match for a lot of teams and we were better in the second half,” he added. “Everyone was at it to a man. Joe (Aribo) came on and made a real impact, he played three positions. He was terrific for us. That is what we need. It is a squad game and not just about the eleven that started the game. Anyone that is asked to come on has to make an impact and that is what the boys did.”

Tavernier admits Morelos’ suspension is a setback for Rangers’ hopes. The Colombian has scored 14 goals in Europe already this season but his ability to hold the ball up and brings others into play will also be missed at the Braga Municipal stadium. Gerrard has already confirmed that Kamberi will start in his place, fitness permitting.

“It is going to be a blow for us, definitely,” he said. “But it is 3-2 on aggregate now. Greg Stewart has been terrific and he keeps working hard on the training field (as well). Flo has been terrific for us since he has come in. Hopefully whoever is picked does a great job for us.”