THE anniversary wasn’t marked and the date wasn’t remembered fondly but it could prove to be one of the most significant in Rangers’ recent history.

If anyone at Ibrox on Thursday night needed reminding of just how far Rangers have come under Steven Gerrard, they only had to cast their minds back twelve months.

As the Light Blues went toe-to-toe with Spartak Moscow, wrote their names in the Ibrox history books and maintained top spot in Group G, few would have recalled where they were a year previously.

It was on that night that Pedro Caixinha’s short-lived and ill-fated reign as manager suffered its final blow as Ryan Jack saw red, Daniel Candeias missed a penalty and Chris Burke scored an injury-time equaliser in a frantic, dramatic finale. Hours later, the Portuguese was sacked.

Few could have imagined then that the following chain of events would lead to Gerrard occupying the Ibrox dugout. And nobody would have foreseen Rangers mixing it in the Europa League this week and being unbeaten in eleven matches on the continent.

The period in between the matches with Killie and Moscow was tumultuous and remarkable, even by Rangers’ standards. Like so many events, it had to be lived to be believed.

James Tavernier has been through it all at Ibrox. Rangers’ fortunes have altered, and Gerrard has been integral to that process.

“I am happy with the change,” Tavernier said as he looked ahead to Sunday’s Betfred Cup semi-final with Aberdeen. “Obviously the appointment of the gaffer was a great step to where this club needs to be.

“It has been really enjoyable for me to work with the gaffer and the new squad and you have seen how far we have come. It has been a great transformation.

“It is down to the team that we have got and we have got characters in the team that will put it all in on the pitch and aren’t afraid to put in a tackle.

“If teams try and bully us, we will try and bully them back. That is the mentality we have got now and that makes a massive difference.”

It is in the European arena that Gerrard effect has been most evident as he has led his side into the group stages and banished the memories of that night in Luxembourg last summer.

But it is on the domestic front where the 38-year-old must really excel this term as Rangers bid for cup success and Premiership glory once again.

The meeting with Aberdeen tomorrow is a chance to move within 90 minutes of a winner’s medal and Tavernier is determined to prove that the Gers are striding forward.

“It was a disappointing season, but it was last season,” he said. “Going from the start against Progres and leading into the league, it was a disappointing season.

“But that is in the past now. I am really looking forward to leading the boys out on Sunday and a good game against Aberdeen.

“Since the start of the season I have been really excited about the season and I am enjoying it and looking forward to the games ahead.

“The way the boys are playing, we are going in the right direction. You can only look forward and on Sunday we are looking forward to playing Aberdeen and hopefully we can book a place in the final.”

Setting up a meeting with Celtic or Hearts would be a notable achievement for Gerrard but he will be judged on the silverware, if any, that he delivers in his first season at Ibrox.

Rangers no longer have the feel of big-game bottlers about them this term and the mentality that Gerrard sought to instil has been evident throughout the campaign.

Now in his fourth season at Ibrox, Tavernier is accustomed to the pressure and used to the spotlight. Crucially, though, he believes his team-mates are able to cope with the expectation as well.

“Personally, I’m mentally tough and I’ve always been able to handle the scrutiny,” he said. “But it can be hard when everything is getting aimed at you and some lads can take it while others can’t.

“Maybe that was a little bit of a factor last season but it’s in the past now and the boys we’ve got now are more than capable with dealing with any kind of situation.

“Aberdeen are going to be a tough opponent and we have to respect them and we’ve got to get past them to get to the final so will concentrate on this game only.

“I believe I’ve improved, especially this season, and I’m getting stronger and stronger and learning more things and getting more experienced.

“It helps that I’ve got big Connor Goldson next to me. I created a great understanding with Daniel [Candeias] last season but having Connor, Greegsy (Allan McGregor) in the net and the whole new back four is really refreshing.

“We’ve kept some really good clean sheets - another on Thursday night against Spartak Moscow - and good performances at the back and you can really rely on the boys to look after each other.”

The performance against the Russians may not have yielded the result that Rangers were seeking but it was far from their worst of the campaign as they were held on home soil.

The semi-final showdown with Derek McInnes’ side is an altogether different challenge for Gerrard and his players. It is one they must overcome, though.

Hampden has been far from a happy hunting ground for Rangers in recent years but Tavernier insists there will be no thoughts of previous events this time around.

“It’s a blank page in terms of going back to Hampden,” he said. “Every game is different. This is against Aberdeen and we haven’t played there this season as a new squad.

“All the previous games just go out of your head and you just want to forget about them and never take them into a game. You only take the positives.

“Since the gaffer has come in the standard of everything - training, the games, the demands - has been right at the top and we’ve lacked that over the years and that’s what the team really needed.

“That’s what we’ve been showing - apart from the first half against Celtic and Livingston - and we know where we need to be to deliver a good performance.”