Can Rangers’ Carlos Pena thrive where Celtic’s Efrain Juarez failed?

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Efrain Juarez struggled with Celtic but his Mexican compatriot Carlos Pena appears better placed to succeed at Rangers – in time anyway.

Carlos Pena does not have to do much to exceed the bar set by his Mexican compatriot in Glasgow.

Efrain Juarez became the first Mexican ever to play in the Scottish top flight when he arrived at Celtic from UNAM in 2010 to the tune of a cool £3 million, per the Daily Record. He didn’t exactly do the reputation of his nation much good, however, featuring just 13 times and quickly falling out of favour.

Despite an encouraging start, it quickly became apparent that Juarez simply wasn’t cut out for life at Celtic so it was no surprise that the Glasgow giants loaned him to Real Zaragoza before selling him on permanently to Club America in 2012.

Rangers’ Carlos Pena, however, hasn’t exactly made a better start to life in Scotland. In fact, you could certainly claim that Juarez made a superior first impression, meaning Gers fans will be praying that Pena can do what his fellow midfielder could not and settle in Glasgow over time.

Pena became Rangers’ most expensive signing since Nikola Jelavic in 2012 when he put pen to paper on a £2.2 million switch from Guadalajara in the summer, as reported by Sky Sports. However, the 27-year-old has been subject to intense criticism for his performances recently, particularly in the 2-0 Old Firm defeat to Celtic.

The storm that surrounded an elbow on Hamilton’s Greg Docherty, which eventually went unpunished by the SFA, has proved another unwelcome distraction.

Yet, unlike Juarez, Pena has arrived in Scotland at the peak of his career. He has been one of the top players in Mexican football over the last couple of years and, when he does eventually adapt to life at Ibrox, could stand head and shoulders above the majority of his Rangers’ team-mates.

And in Pedro Caixinha, Pena has a manager who knows him well from his time as manager of Liga MX side Santos Laguna. Though he’ll need to find his form and fitness first, however, if he is to avoid more inevitable comparisons with Juarez.