Rangers will be in the market for new signings this summer – and must find midfield reinforcements.
Rangers manager Pedro Caixinha
Rangers face a huge transfer window this summer, with new manager Pedro Caixinha desperately needing reinforcements in his squad.
The Gers have gone five league games unbeaten under Caixinha, but last week’s 2-0 Scottish Cup semi-final defeat to Celtic showed just how big the gap between the Old Firm rivals is.
Caixinha has had some time to study his squad and pick out areas for improvement, and whilst he will want to strengthen a number of areas of the Rangers side, midfield is a particular concern.
Former manager Mark Warburton made a host of moves to boost his midfield last summer, but those deals have brought limited rewards for the Gers, with Joey Barton released after just eight games and Niko Kranjcar ruled out for most of the season.
Jordan Rossiter has almost become the forgotten man at Ibrox after an injury-hit season, Matt Crooks was loaned out to Scunthorpe having failed to make an impact, whilst both Jon Toral and Emerson Hyndman are both on loan from Arsenal and Bournemouth respectively.
Graham Dorrans of Norwich City celebrates
It’s therefore imperative that at least one new midfielder is brought in this summer, and recent transfer rumours suggest that manager Caixinha also sees that area of the pitch as a problem.
The Scottish Sun reported earlier this month that Rangers are keen to land Aberdeen midfield maestro Ryan Jack on a free transfer when his contract expires, whilst they also claimed that Norwich City’s boyhood Gers fan Graham Dorrans is another target.
Celtic’s Scott Brown (L) in action with Aberdeen’s Ryan Jack
Both would be major additions to the Rangers midfield, which has been scrutinised since the Scottish Cup semi-final defeat to Celtic, given that Celtic captain Scott Brown controlled the game and enjoyed one of the easiest Old Firm derbies in recent times.
To challenge Celtic again, Rangers must improve in the middle of the park and unsettle Brown, whilst also being able to create and make an impact in the final third – and Jack and Dorrans fit the bill, suggesting that major surgery on the Rangers midfield could be expected.
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