Australian midfielder Brandon O’Neill could be heading to Ibrox – what does this mean for Jason Holt’s future at Scottish Premiership giants Rangers?
Jason Holt has remained a semi-regular figure in Rangers’ starting XI despite the January additions of Sean Goss on loan from QPR and Greg Docherty from Hamilton Academical.
Then again, a tally of just four starts in a possible nine games shows that the 25-year-old is not exactly one of the guaranteed first names on Graeme Murty’s team-sheet, and it is tempting to wonder how many minutes he would have played had Graham Dorrans not missed every game since the winter break ended through injury.
Unfortunately for Holt, it looks like his chances of forcing his way into the starting XI will not be aided by Rangers’ summer transfer plans.
According to the Canberra Times, Sydney FC’s star midfielder Brandon O’Neill has played his way onto Rangers’ radar, and the Scottish Sun believe that a cut-price deal could be possible with the 23-year-old, who is yet to win a cap for Australia’s senior international team, due to be a free-agent in December.
O’Neill, who is also eligible to play for the Republic of Ireland, is a deep lying defensive midfielder renowned for his energy and ball winning ability. Worryingly, however, these are the same attributes that have made Holt a useful member of Rangers’ squad over the last few seasons.
The former Hearts man’s opportunities have decreased with more and more central midfielders arriving at Ibrox and, if O’Neill does sign, Holt could find himself even further down the pecking order.
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