STEVEN GERRARD is confident Nathan Patterson can become a stalwart for club and country after proving his worth on the Europa League stage once again.
The right-back produced an accomplished performance as Rangers earned a draw with Slavia Prague on Thursday night to give them a chance of clinching a spot in the quarter-finals.
Patterson scored in the previous round against Royal Antwerp after returning from a club suspension following his Coronavirus rule break alongside four of his Ibrox team-mates.
And Gerrard has backed the 19-year-old to continue improving and impressing as he looks to fulfill his promise as the natural successor to captain James Tavernier.
Gerrard said: "He was outstanding. I think he has become a man tonight. This was probably the biggest game of his career, in fact it is for sure.
"He has had a real big few weeks emotionally and he has stepped into the captain’s position and played with maturity.
🎥 PRESS CONFERENCE: Steven Gerrard spoke to the media after tonight's match against Slavia Prague. pic.twitter.com/99hxNZoY1E
— Rangers Football Club (@RangersFC) March 11, 2021
"He has got a massive future ahead of him and we just need to keep guiding him and shaping him and improving him. We have got a player here, I think.
"I think you've seen the moves I've made in terms of the squad. I moved two or three full-backs on because I had big confidence in Calvin Bassey and also Nathan Patterson.
READ MORE: Rangers boss Steven Gerrard ready to grasp Europa League opportunity at Ibrox
"We decided not to extend Jon Flanagan and moved Matt Polster on. And that's because we knew we had to make room for Nathan.
"There are only so many days you can spend in the academy and only so many games you can play well in before you need to make the next step.
"The club have rewarded him on a couple of occasions with contracts so I think we've shown ion the past the confidence and belief we have in the kid.
"Now he just needs to keep growing and learning. We want him to become a real elite player and full-back for this country and club, more importantly.
"It's an exciting future for him. He's young and he just needs to be looked after in the right way. He's in the right place."
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