Glasgow Rangers followed up their impressive Old Firm derby win last weekend with a 3-1 win over Hibernian away from home on Sunday in the Scottish Premiership.
The Light Blues led 1-0 at half-time thanks to a stunning free-kick from captain James Tavernier. He shaped to cross the ball into the box before whipping a strike into the top corner, which caught out David Marshall at his near post.
Romanian international Ianis Hagi then made it 2-0 in the 55th minute as the attacking midfielder rebounded his own blocked shot to rifle a strike into the bottom corner from just inside the box.
Todd Cantwell completed the scoring for Rangers in the 86th minute. The Englishman followed in after Marshall's save from Tavernier and slotted the rebound into the back of the net before Paul Hanlon scored a consolation goal in stoppage time.
There were a number of impressive performers on the day for Michael Beale and one player who stood out alongside the skipper – who was involved in two of the three aforementioned goals – in a rare appearance was central defender Leon King.
How did Leon King perform against Hibernian?
The Light Blues academy graduate staked a claim for a starting position heading into next season with a composed and efficient display at the heart of the defence in his first start since November.
He was pivotal to what Rangers did, both in and out of possession, as they were able to completely dominate Hibs from start to finish.
Defensively, the 19-year-old gem could not put a foot wrong as he cruised through the game with impressive ease – as per Sofascore, the 6-foot enforcer won 100% (10/10) of his duels and made four clearances, two interceptions, and four tackles – no other Gers player won more individual battles.
King also won all six of his contests on the ground and both of his aerial duels and this shows that King was able to dominate the opposition attackers, who did not get any change out of the Scottish defender, which also increased the number of opportunities his side had to make things happen going forward.
The teenage titan was also key to what Beale's side did in possession of the ball – as per Sofascore, the 96-touch ace completed 85% (67/79) of his attempted passes, 100% (1/1) of his dribbles, and created one chance for his teammates.
This shows that the £4k-per-week tank was not a liability on the ball and was, instead, able to drive the team forward with the ball to find teammates in good positions, which then allowed them to showcase their quality in the final third.
Therefore, King's performance was exceptional at the back as the youngster was able to combine sublime defending with composure in possession to dismantle Hibernian alongside the usual protagonist in Tavernier, who himself created three chances and scored from right-back as he made a huge impact at the top end of the pitch.