ARCHIE STEVENS has reflected on a ‘really positive’ debut campaign at Rangers after joining the Academy from AFC Wimbledon last summer.
The Englishman made the move north of the border as a 16-year-old and was handed his first-team debut only a month after joining the club in a 3-1 victory over Queen of the South at Ibrox in the Viaplay Cup.
Stevens soon suffered an injury setback which ruled him out for a number of months, but the teenager returned towards the end of the season to feature for the B Team in the City of the Glasgow Cup, as well playing an important role in the Under-18s’ run to the Scottish Youth Cup final.
Speaking exclusively to RangersTV, Stevens commented: “It was a really positive year overall last season. There were a lot of new challenges, new faces, and it was a year of ups and downs, but it’s what you sign up for. It’s part of football and I thought I dealt with the negatives well. I’m now pushing on to hopefully have a good year this time around as well.
“It was quite a serious environment [that I came into]. It was a cup game so coming into it you get a real taste of what it’s going to be like.
“It’s a buzz every time that you play at Ibrox, no matter the occasion. There were fans in the stadium when I made my first-team debut and we all know how amazing the supporters are, and obviously we had fans come down as well for the Scottish Youth Cup semi-final. It shows that the support is always there.
Although injury stalled Stevens’ momentum following his call-up to the England Under-17s squad, he was left reassured that better days were ahead after a brief phone call with first-team midfielder Ianis Hagi.
The 17-year-old is now keen to kick on this season as the B Team continue their varied Best v Best games programme, while he also celebrated a call-up to the England Under-18s squad in the recent international break.
He continued: “There have been some first-team players who have given me advice, especially in the months after the [Queen of the South] game.
“When I picked up my injury a couple of months later, Ianis Hagi was really good with me. I was on the phone with him, and obviously he had that harsh injury as well. He gave me advice and tips in how to deal with it, so he was really good for my recovery.
“If I ever get an injury in the future now I’ll know how to deal with it. I learned a lot from it, and it’s made me stronger.
“I was at a really high point because my England and Rangers first-team debuts came really close together. It was annoying because it slowed down the process, but it’s just part and parcel of football and you can’t help it. It’s about how you deal with it.
“I was speaking to someone who said that it was probably better that it happened when I was at a high, because it would have been considerably worse if it happened at a low. I’ve learned that everything happens for a reason, and hopefully there’s good things to follow.”
You can catch the full interview with Archie Stevens exclusively on RangersTV now.
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