Alfredo Morelos and Eduardo Herrera will join Rangers’ attacking ranks but this does not help the development of their 20-year-old talent Ryan Hardie.
Rangers’ Ryan Hardie
Ryan Hardie could hardly have done any more to convince Rangers manager Pedro Caixinha that he deserves a chance in the first-team next season.
As the 20-year-old striker curled a stunning curling shot into the bottom corner to help Scotland earn a third placed finish at the prestigious Toulon Tournament, Hardie announced himself as one of the nation’s most exciting talents.
That was his third goal of a hugely promising trip to France. And with Caixinha already pushing the likes of Aiden Wilson, David Bates and Myles Beerman into his first-team plans since taking over in March, there’s short odds on Hardie following in their footsteps.
However, though the manager has been commended for his proactive approach to the transfer market so far, clinching five deals with more expected to follow, the risk is that he may end up stunting the growth of the biggest talents at Rangers’ disposal.
After all, Bates and Wilson featured sporadically in the final few months of last season but the additions of Portuguese duo Bruno Alves and Fabio Cardoso mean opportunities may be harder to come by next term.
Furthermore, Rangers have already reinforced a hitherto toothless attack with the signing of 20-year-old Colombian Alfredo Morelos. In 86 games for HJK Helsinki in Finland, the youngster scored a remarkable 52 goals.
Alfredo Morelos (R) is a hugely exciting addition
And he is likely to be joined by Eduardo Herrera, Pumas UNAM’s Mexican international forward who Caixinha knows well from his spell in charge of Santos Laguna.
Therefore, it appears that Hardie is already up against if he aims to force his way into Caixinha’s first-team plans next season. The coach has demonstrated that age is just a number at Ibrox but, the more players he brings in, the further Hardie appears to be from the starting XI.
Rangers manager Pedro Caixinha
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