Jason Holt was a key player for Pedro Caixinha’s Rangers last season, but now he finds himself well down the pecking order.
Once Pedro Caixinha replaced Mark Warburton at Rangers with just two months to go before the end of the season, he wasted little time putting his faith in tenacious midfielder Jason Holt.
The 24-year-old was one of the first names on the team sheet in the final few weeks of the campaign, his work-rate and energy in central midfield making him indispensable to Rangers’ new Portuguese manager.
However, with Caixinha putting his stamp on the squad to the tune of eleven summer signings in the off-season, it is fair to say Holt’s importance appears to have diminished.
A regular starter last season, the former Hearts favourite has played just 81 minutes of first-team football in 2017/18 – almost all of them coming in the infamous Europa League qualifying defeat to Progress Niederkorn, who finished fourth in Luxembourg’s top flight last season.
Jason’s progress Holted
Ryan Jack (below), Graham Dorrans and Carlos Pena all arrived in the summer while Jordan Rossiter and Niko Kranjcar returned to fitness after missing almost the entirety of the previous campaign. As such, Holt has fallen so far down the pecking order that Caixinha seems to have forgotten he exists with the manager’s two-man midfield leaving little room to manoeuvre.
Based on his performances last season, some would suggest Holt has been harshly treated. On the other hand, however, some sections of the support will argue that Holt is exactly the kind of player Rangers needed to upgrade if they want to close to gap to Aberdeen, let alone Celtic.
No one can question Holt’s commitment but there is little evidence to suggest he would form a vital part of a Rangers side challenging at the very top of the Scottish game.
His contribution in helping Rangers return to the top flight should not be forgotten but it appears that letting Holt go would be a necessarily evil.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
