'Something Rangers have not had in a while' - Kenny Miller marvels at emergence of breakthrough Ibrox star

Surprise statistic shows impact made by Rangers youngster under Philippe Clement

Rangers youngster Ross McCausland celebrates putting his side 1-0 up against Kilmarnock on January 2. (Photo by Paul Devlin / SNS Group)

Only four players have featured in every one of Philippe Clement’s 18 games at the Rangers helm. In early October, you could have collected a tidy sum if placing a wager on Ross McCausland featuring in such a quartet.

The 20-year-old had only made one senior outing before the Belgian took charge in the middle of that month…and that came in the game before his appointment. Now the winger has started the club’s past six encounters - banking a League Cup winners’ medal and his first league goal in that time, having already claimed a crucial European strike. And in the process achieved a feat setting him apart from the majority of those deployed in the wide right role over recent times as far as former Rangers striker Kenny Miller is concerned.

“He has come in and taken his chance, deserves to be playing, and in my opinion is the best option at the club in that area of the pitch,” said the now media pundit. “He had a run of appearances from the bench and every time he came on and impacted. And then from that he has done something that not many from that position have done at Rangers in recent years: he has grasped his chance and nailed down his place. At the moment. It is great, as everybody likes to see young players coming in. Can you rely on him moving forward to go and win leagues and things? Time will tell.

“But, listen, I don’t think he has had a bad game since he has come in. Yes, he has had games when he’s maybe not been as effective but he has always been working hard, been positive and direct. He is a good ball carrier, which is something Rangers have maybe not had for a while. For a 20-year-old lad to come in, it is a big responsibility. Particularly when [the team] wasn’t in a great moment. But the manager obviously sees him every day and knows he can go and nail that slot.

“It will be interesting to see over January, if there is another player signed for in there, how it will affect him. Will it push him on? How does he respond? These are all challenges that younger players have to overcome because at some point he will come out the team. It is about how he responds to that and whether he comes back stronger. But at this moment in time he has that jersey and someone has to take it off him.”

The contrast with Cyriel Dessers could be considered acute. Just when it seemed the Nigerian had shaken off all-to-many bad games to enjoy more profitable times - capped with his superb strike in the 3-2 victory away to Real Betis that swept the club into the Europa League last 16 - came his dismal derby showing in a 2-1 defeat at Celtic Park. His fluffing of a glaring one-on-one with Joe Hart returning him to the status of can’t-be-trusted trier. Miller, though, refuses to see his showing at the end of last year as having set him back completely. “I don’t think you can say that, because you don’t know. It was a chance, that’s it,” he said. “It never set me back, it didn’t bother me, you have to keep going and going until the next one. I don’t think you can say that because you can’t pigeonhole into the same mindset. Everyone is different. How he responds to it, we’ll see.”