Is Lee Hodson safe from Rangers cull – for now?

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Scottish Premiership giants Rangers will farm a number of players out of Ibrox this summer – but Lee Hodson appears to be staying as things stand.

Since arriving from MK Dons in the summer of 2016, Lee Hodson has never been anything more than a squad player at Rangers.

In the last two seasons, the Northern Irish right-back has featured in just 16 Scottish Premiership games, five of those coming in 2017/18.

So with Rangers set for a mass summer clear-out as they aim to rebuild and kick-start the Steven Gerrard era, it was expected that Hodson would be one of the first out the door.

But according to the Scottish Sun, Rangers are expected to bid farewell to nine senior players this summer, including Fabio Cardoso, Bruno Alves, Andy Halliday and Alfredo Morelos.

Hodson, however, does not seem to be in immediate danger of the cull. And perhaps there is a very clear explanation for this.

Because, accordint to The Sun, the man who has been keeping Hodson out of the starting line-up, James Tavernier, is a target for Premier League trio Everton, Burnley and Swansea City this summer.

Tavernier, a more adventures and attack-minded full-back, has been in excellent form all season but the Daily Record suggests that Rangers could struggle to turn down offers in excess of £4 million – pocket change to a club like Everton these days.

So maybe Hodson is safe as long as Tavernier’s future is up in the air. Losing the first-choice right-back would be bad enough for Rangers, losing his understudy too would be a major problem.