Mark Lawrenson: Warburton must make this team change to solve Rangers problem
By Matt Farr
BBC pundit Mark Lawrenson insists that Rangers must play Kenny Miller and Joe Garner up-front together if they want to score more goals.
Miller has been the chief goalscorer at Ibrox this season, but his fellow striker Garner has struggled to live up to billing since his move from Preston in the summer.
The 28-year-old has netted just three goals in 23 appearances for the club, but Lawrenson believes that partnering him alongside veteran Miller could help him rediscover his best form.
Lawrenson was a big admirer of Garner’s talents during his time in the Championship, but does not think that Rangers boss Mark Warburton is doing enough to get the best out of him.
He told the Daily Record: “I wouldn’t play him up front on his own ever but he offers tremendous nuisance value and his physicality occupies two defenders.
“If you are Kenny Miller who we all know scores goals for fun you would absolutely love playing as a two with Joe.
“I’m not the Rangers manager and maybe he feels the team isn’t strong enough to play with two but Joe is definitely better in a pairing, no doubt about it.”
Warburton has so far shown a preference towards playing with just one striker up top, and with Garner absent with a shoulder injury in recent weeks, Miller has been the leading man.
However, the 37-year-old has been in top form, netting three goals in his last three appearances, making it difficult for Garner to win his place back in the side.
The former Championship hitman has a prolific past, having bagged 57 goals from 151 appearances during his time at Preston, but has yet to rediscover that kind of form at Ibrox.
Warburton, meanwhile, needs to try something new to win back the approval of the Rangers fans, who have started to turn on him in recent weeks.
Lawrenson’s suggested tactical shift could be one potential avenue for Warburton to explore, having scored just 32 goals this season – 13 fewer than fourth-placed Hearts.
In other Rangers news, Ally Dawson has delivered a critical analysis of Rangers’ players.
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