John Walker Football Analytics

John Walker Football Analytics UEFA A Licence Football Coach offering Bespoke Services for Individual or Teams to fulfill their Analysis Needs

03/09/2026

Rangers: Ball-Playing or Direct Transition?

I feel like we are completely between styles at times:
> Playing Out from the Back
> Horseshoe to Release Winger 1v1
> Direct & Second-Ball to Transition

Both Goals yesterday comes from "Direct Play" & picking up a second ball in transition.

McInnes said he isn't bothered about midfielders getting on the ball so potentially we should be going more direct with structure:
> GK & CB's to Avoid Over-Playing
> CM's Looking for the Ball or Stay Central
> Get Numbers Around a Second-Ball

Fernandez frustration's with the lack of movement, leads to a lack of focus & some terrible errors with the ball and that can't continue.

Whether that means we go more direct, give more clarity or give Godfrey game-time, we shall see.

For me, it is irrelevant, all that is required is for Rangers & McInnes to decide, with clairty, exactly what team they want to be...

28/08/2026

Rangers: Inverting James Penrice

Rangers have struggled so far to progress play and really implement a "Style" to Build from the Back under McInnes.

Last night we tried to invert James Penrice in the 1st Half, similar with Dragojevic v Jagiellonia, but that requires a lot of work.

1. Worked on the Training Pitch with the Team:
> Allows the Player (Penrice) to Feel It
> Helps the Player Understand WHEN & WHY
> Allows CB's to Understand WHEN to Play It
> Gives a Chance to CM's to see "Counter-Movements"

Then the coaches can address any tweaks based on how Jablonec press & where the gaps are

2. Individual Work on Training Pitch (5-10mins)
> Fullbacks are used to having pitch infront of them
> Work on Back-Foot Receiving
> Work on Playing Passes through Lines
> Work on Driving Inside the Pitch
> Underlapping from an Inside 8 Position & Crossing

3. 121 Analysis with the Analysts (15-20mins)
> Show Player Visuals from Previous Game
> Show Player Examples of Good Inverting (Ange Teams)

It is very clear that we have just told James Penrice to play as an "Inverted Fullback" & not done any training ground preparation or in-depth 121 Analysis of it to help him.

Absolutely none of that sits with James Penrice, I watched the work Ange Postecoglou did at Celtic with Harry Kewell on 121 work with Greg Taylor, Alastair Johnston & the other fullbacks.

28/08/2026

Rangers: Man for Man Pressing

Rangers were outplayed, outcoached & as a result, out of Europe & McInnes "Man for Man" press seems to be a huge mitigating factor for the players.

Look back at Hearts v Motherwell last season, where Motherwell took a 3-0 lead & it was all down to "man for man" pressure with a smart coach with a style exploiting it. (Hearts recovered a draw)

Same as last night, Jabonlec far superior in their "Style" and "Rotations" which all comes from good coaching and identifying weaknesses in your opponent.

My main issues with Man for Man Pressing:
> Individuals Focus on Themselves
> CB Drives Out Beyond CF
> Who Corrects the "Next" Player
> Do CM's Drop or Jump onto that
> How High Do CB's Go

I felt sorry for Dan Neil, I do not think yesterday merited a HT sub, I felt it was structural & he wasn't alone, it was 7-8 players uncertain.

If 7-8 players are waving arms about due to uncertainty and frustration then this isn't being addressed in training and/or in analysis meetings to ensure clarity

In defence of McInnes, switching to 3-5-2 and adding a 3rd CM did address a lot of these gaps from first half but it still didn't have any impact on Rangers creating chances.

21/08/2026

Cammy Devlin: Progress Play

This again, is not a video to bash him, it's hard being a Rangers player & adapting to it, the attention and analysis from people like myself.

Everything I do video wise, is the stuff I'd be open and honest with my own clients in professional football and with the same demands to "Play".

Devlin is only just on & being a sub is not ideal but there are 3 occasions before his red card where he can do so much more with "little adjustments".

The ball is with Dujon Sterling (RB):
> Adjust to the Highest Central Point to support
> Scan for the "Next Pass" before receiving
> Explore Forward & Central Options First

If you have done all that and still need to go back to where it came from, fine, do that but then re-adjust to get it forward or switched.

Playing safe and being passive has contributed to the situation where he is trying to crash the box.

19/08/2026

121 Work: Analyse, Meet, Repeat

Another look into Rangers Midfield Unit and an example of how this should work in Modern Football to develop players.

Winning 5-1 v St.Mirren with a better performance shouldn't just be put to side & moved on from, this is why Elite Players do 121 Analysis after every single game to improve.

The Midfield-3 worked & each player had their best game of the season but there is always opportunity to drive home:
> Playing Forward
> Body Shape & Scanning Approach to Assist that
> Opportunities Missed & Why (As above)

The Perfect 121 Performance Analysis Routine:
> All Clips from Match
> All Moments To Develop
> Meet Once a Week
> Repeat

We are probably never going to see the likes of a Barry Ferguson or Steven Davis at Rangers again, or at least in the nearer future, but we should be striving to improve every one in the building to as close to that level as possible.

Those are the traits those players possessed constantly

18/08/2026

Showcase Video Work Available

If you have footage of your son/daughter that plays football at any level, or access to full games and would a CV/Showcase Video pulled together, get in touch to discuss.

This video could be used simply to create a highlight video as a present or it can be used to send to other teams if searching for a club.

Here is an example of what it could look like 👇

17/08/2026

Fernandez - Don't Drop Him, Develop Him 📈

I see a lot of comments around Fernandez, lazy ones, "he's lazy", "head turned" & "disinterested" but he consistently covers top distances, ridiculous high-speed sprint numbers for a CB & has also jumped National League to European Football in 2.5yrs.

The penalty yesterday, in my opinion, comes from a clear man for man philosophy when defending:
> Dealing with a 3v2
> Doesn't Address Ball-Side Danger (Stays with Phillips)
> Sterling Does the Same
> Narrows and Engages Too Late

Exact same error Sterling made for me v Dundee Utd or McCrorie makes v Jagiellonia & it has to be the approach to follow man instead of space.

That is totally fine, but what is meant to happen when a player is breached, when do players adjust & what is expected then?!

Manny Fernandez has the potential to be a goldmine record-sale for Rangers but it needs to be intense development and coaching to ensure he doesn't drop levels and keeps the confidence up.

15/08/2026

Rangers Press: Man for Man Risk

It is really difficult to instruct players to go man for man, in my opinion, when you play a well-coached team.

Rangers kept launching into a press from no structure:
> Open to Central Passes
> Players 10-Yards Off the Next Press
> Gambling Wrong-side & Allowing Teams Forward

Then there is also a lack of reading the moments & in 2nd Half for me, it's wild.

Seen it in the stadium at the time, Shankland was telling Raskin to stay in CM:
> Raskin Jumps 15 Yards
> Shankland Retreats 30 Yards
> Opp. LB Going Nowhere

Shankland tries to communicate something but I am unsure to who but a lot of wasted energy in these moments in and already energy sapping game which we were winning...

14/08/2026

Rangers: 121/Unit Analysis Example

Same disclaimers, this isn't "having a go" or "singling out" players, just simply an example of the type of Performance Analysis I do with International Footballers.

If I was reviewing the Midfield Unit at Rangers today and having 121/Unit meetings with the 4 CM's this is where I'd be focussed.

Playing Forward
It is far too lazy just to show examples and go, we didn't get the ball forward or we didn't get Aasgaard into the game. You need to go deeper:
> How Do We Get Aasgaard on the Ball?
> Can Midfielders Adjust to Play Forward?
> What Adjustments Would Help?
> Show Video Scenarios & Discuss

In all of these clips, it's so vital on the little adjustments:
> Constantly Scanning for the Space
> Adjusting to the Opposition
> Body-Shape When Receiving
> Knowing the Next Pass

I don't believe Rangers do any of this on a 121 Level or Unit Level just now but it is an absolute necessity game to game to help develop individuals and a team.

No Rangers players are my clients, work with me, or have ever worked with myself 👌

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