Glasgow Rangers will be hoping to do the kind of business that sees them win the race for second place in the Scottish Premiership.
Former Rangers midfielder Alex Rae has told Mark Warburton that he has to prioritise signing a new striker during the January transfer window following the injury to Joe Garner, The Scottish Sun reports.
Garner had to be stretchered off during the early stages of the latest Old Firm clash, leaving Warburton with something of a dilemma to contend with up front.
The Gers’ strikers have failed to really hit the heights this season. Kenny Miller is the club’s top goalscorer in the Scottish Premiership, but has scored just five times while the likes of Martyn Waghorn, Joe Dodoo and Garner himself have scored just eight top flight goals between them.
Rangers’ Joe Garner
And based on those numbers, and the fact that Garner is set to be sidelined for a period of time, Rae has insisted that Warburton must concentrate on strengthening his options up front.
“I know there has been talk about bringing in a midfielder and the lad Jota, who was playing in Spain, had been mentioned,” he said, as reported by The Scottish Sun.
“But if you look at it, Rangers have been coping and playing without Niko Kranjcar for a wee while now.
“The team had settled and adjusted and while I’m sure it’s an area Mark Warburton would like to strengthen, the priority has to be a striker.
“Rangers have to get someone to fill the void left by Garner because making sure they finish second is the undoubted aim now.”
Rangers manager Mark Warburton
With several options to pick from up front even without Garner, Warburton may argue, perhaps rightly, that the Light Blues should not make a striker signing just for the sake of it.
Unfortunately for Rangers, the title looks to be beyond reach already and they have proved during the first-half of the campaign that, even when they are under-par, there is still enough depth in their current squad to potentially win the race for second place this term.
Therefore, it should arguably not be deemed to be the end of the world if they wait until the summer to make a significant signing as they are surely more likely to get much better value for money than if they make their move this month.
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