It’s looking increasingly likely that Rangers will be parting ways with Borna Barisic in the summer as the Croatian international ends his six-year spell at the club.
Bought for a fee in the region of £2m from NK Osijek, the 31-year old has been a good signing for the club and has always been a valuable member of the squad.
The emergence of Ridvan Yilmaz and Rangers manager Philippe Clement looking to move in a new direction means that Borna Barisic’s time has run out but there have been plenty of highlights in his spell at Ibrox.
Rangers have got their money’s worth if Borna Barisic goes
Yes, there have been low points, as rumours of a move to Turkey increase in speculation.
Barisic is one of those players who, in big games, has either been one of our best or, one of our worst.
He can keep opposition wingers quiet but can be equally capable of being negative in possession and switching off at cross balls.
There never seems to be a happy medium.
Ridvan isn’t perfect but he is infective.
His enthusiasm, attitude and aggressiveness make up for his lack of a physical presence.
This isn’t to say that Barisic hasn’t had his moments since signing in 2018, there is a reason why he has won 30 of his 35 Croatia caps whilst at Rangers, a country that has been going deep in major tournaments for some time now.
His first goal for Rangers
Jon Flanagan and Andy Halliday were offering a more competitive option and were a contributing factor to Barisic not settling straight away.
However, this is the moment when he announced himself as a Rangers player and cemented himself as first choice.
Top corner and the winning goal.
The Old Firm corner
One thing Barisic can be relied upon is a good delivery.
One corner in particular springs to mind.
At 0-0 against Celtic at Ibrox in the first Old Firm of the season as champions, Barisic swapped flanks to deliver an inswinging corner.
Before he did, he urged the fans to make some noise.
What happened next was Filip Helander scoring a memorable goal and first blood in a championship that didn’t go the way we thought it would at that moment in time.
Barisic finds the top corner again
When Barisic got his free-kicks right, he got them very right.
It might not have been the most important of games but when he sent one flying into the top corner against Falkirk.
If James Tavernier wasn’t so prolific, there’s every chance that Barisic would have more goals to his name from set-pieces.
There is, sometimes, another side to Borna Barisic that we have seen a few times during his Rangers career.
One, against Young Boys, where the Gers left back offered the whole away support a square go.
The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
What might be the lasting memory of Borna Barisic could be one from this season.
Success in the Viaplay Cup final saw the Croatian join in the celebrations with the fans and take one of the flags off the Union Bears.
His infamous “I apologise, I apologise for nothing,” quote is one that, perhaps, perfectly sums up his time at Rangers.
