CONNOR GOLDSON has been a regular fixture in the Rangers starting XI ever since he arrived at Ibrox from Brighton last summer for around £3 million. In that time, the 26-year-old has been virtually ever-present in Steven Gerrard's back line, missing only the occasional cup game to get a rest.

Goldson was arguably Rangers' best centre-back last season but with Nikola Katic's recent improvement at the back and the addition of Filip Helander, that may no longer be the case. Of course, with Helander, we simply don't know: the Swedish centre-back has only featured once since joining Rangers from Bologna for around £3.5 million, away to East Fife in the Betfred Cup.

The Ibrox supporters have been grumbling about Goldson for a while now and there have been calls for Helander or George Edmundson to be given a chance in the starting line-up in his stead. But is the recent criticism levelled at the centre-half justified?

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In a word: yes. The graphic above details Goldson's stats from the Premiership last season and this campaign and shows a noticable drop-off in some key areas. It's still early days, of course, so Goldson's figures can surely improve as the season goes on. But as it stands, there is no getting away from the fact that he isn't performing anywhere the level that he was last year.

Goldson's tackling success rate should be the greatest cause for concern for Steven Gerrard at the moment. Last year, Goldson was winning 73% of his defensive duels. This season, that figure has plummeted to 55.6% - a dreadful rate for a central defender. Similarly, Goldson is winning fewer headers and committing more fouls than he was last season.

The Englishman's ball rentention has actually slightly improved - he was losing the ball 9.5 times per 90 minutes in 2018/19 and that figure has now dropped to 8.08 - but, concerningly, more of these are occuring in his own half. Last season, 35% of Goldson's ball losses occured in his own half: this year, that number has risen to 46.4%.

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Playing as a centre-back relies more than just defending, though, and it is only fair to point out that Goldson has improved in some regards. His passing, for example, has become more frequent and more accurate. His overall passing stats are better, and Goldson is playing more forward passes than last season and has increased his accuracy in this regard from 73.5% to 84.1%. Similarly, the defender's long passing accuracy has also increased.

One area where Goldson has deteriorated, however, is in the number of progressive runs (dribbles where the ball travels at least 10 metres up the pitch) that he averages per 90 minutes. Modern defenders are often required to carry the ball out from defence but Goldson is doing this on fewer occasions than he was last season.

Whether or not Helander provides Gerrard with an upgrade on Goldson remains to be seen but there is little doubt that Goldson is struggling to replicate his form from last season. In the most fundamental aspects of play as a centre-back, Goldson has gotten worse in almost every way.

One issue that is possibly blocking Helander's route to the starting XI is the fact that, as a left-footer, he usually lines up as a left-sided centre-back. With Katic starting the season strongly in this area of the pitch, Gerrard is perhaps wary of disrupting the Croatian's good form. Maybe Katic can maintain his positive start as a right-sided centre-back, maybe he won't. We can't say for sure until we see him in action there. But with Goldson's performances continuing to slide, it surely won't be long until Gerrard is tempted to try out a new defensive partnership in Katic and Helander. There is no gurantee that it will necessarily work out but the Rangers boss will need to act eventually to remedy Goldson's dip.