Lee Hodson must be a manager’s dream to work with. Make no mistake, the Rangers full-back wants to play every week, but he’s not the type to throw his toys out of the pram when he his name isn’t among the first eleven on the teamsheet on any given matchday. He simply regroups, re-dedicates himself in training and prepares as thoroughly as he can should his chance arise in the next game.
Above all else, Hodson is a realist. And when he looks at the man who is currently ahead of him in the right-back berth for Rangers, he is strikingly pragmatic as he admits that he has little reason to be battering down Graeme Murty’s door. James Tavernier, he believes, is destined for even bigger and better things.
“As a player you want to play every week but it's not always the case,” said Hodson.
“We've got a big squad here and everyone is competing for a position. That's healthy for players.
“Of course, it can be frustrating to be in and out. It's hard to get a run of form going.
“But I need to keep working hard and if I get an opportunity to play, I need to take it and stay in the team.
“It's tough to dislodge Tav. He's a great player who's been playing really well lately.
“So, it's difficult for me to get a run of games when I've got Tav playing like that every week.
“But all I can do is stay fit, do as much as I can with the fitness coaches, and when I'm needed I'll be in the right state to do a job.
“Tav's good enough for the Premier League in England. If given that chance, any player in this team could play down there. But Tav is top quality and there's been talk of him going elsewhere. But he's fully concentrated on playing at Rangers because he wants to be successful at this club.”
Tavernier has generally been perceived as a full-back whose talents lay more in attacking rather than defending, but Hodson has been struck by just how adept his teammate has now become at both ends of the field.
And although he believes the sky is the limit for Tavernier – as well as the rest of his teammates – he believes that there is currently plenty to achieve at Rangers to satisfy the ambitions of the players.
“You look at the modern-day full-back these days and they get up and down,” he said.
“They're good at attacking but can also defend. I don't see why Tav can't do those things and it's down to him, really.
“If he plays well every week for Rangers, who knows who's watching or whose eye you might catch. That's not just the case for Tav, it's for anyone in the team.
“There's been interest in a few of the lads in this window. That proves the team are doing something right on the pitch.
“But all the boys want to be at Rangers right now and want to win trophies.”
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