Scottish Premiership giants Rangers are reportedly about to sign Ovie Ejaria from Premier League Liverpool and Bournemouth’s Hyndman set the benchmark.
For a short period of time, Emerson Hyndman was a real fan favourite at Ibrox.
The American midfielder was something of an unknown when he joined Rangers on loan from Bournemouth in January 2016 but quickly set about showing the fans why he is so highly-rated across the Atlantic.
Hyndman added skill, vision, creativity and goals to the Rangers engine room. And, by the time his short-lived spell in Scotland came to an end, the USA starlet had four goals, two assists and a Gers Young Player of the Year award under his belt.
And it is fair to say he was missed, too. Rangers lacked that creative spark at times last season with the likes of Graham Dorrans, Ryan Jack and Jason Holt providing more perspiration than inspiration.
Fortunately, however, Rangers could be on the verge of landing Hyndman’s successor in the exciting Liverpool youngster Ovie Ejaria.
Thanks to Steven Gerrard’s Anfield connections, the 20-year-old is set to sign on loan within the next day or two, according to the Daily Record. And Ejaria, an England U21 international, is perhaps the most natural successor to Hyndman at Ibrox.
Like the Bournemouth youngster, Ejaria is renowned for his balance in possession, his ability to thread the ball through the eye of the needle and link the play with speed and class in the centre of the park.
His arrival will make Rangers easier on the eye and, should he adapt better than he did during a forgettable spell at Sunderland, more dangerous and unpredictable in the final third.
Ejaria, however, has a lot to live up to.
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