Rangers manager Steven Gerrard will lead his side in a Champions League qualifier for the first time next month when the Gers face Malmo or HJK Helsinki in the third qualifying round – but the Ibrox boss faces a squad registration dilemma ahead of his side kicking a ball in anger.
The Light Blues have fallen foul of the registration regulations in recent seasons due to a lack of homegrown players, limiting how many of the 25 spots in Rangers’ Champions League squad Gerrard can fill.
With a large first-team squad, Gerrard will again face problems when it comes to picking his squad ahead of the deadline on July 29.
Rangers can pick 25 players on the A list (senior players) but eight of those must be considered homegrown – with four of those eight coming through at the club.
As part of the 25-man A list, two of them must be goalkeepers.
There is also the B list for Academy players to be registered on to bolster Rangers’ Champions League squad – with a third goalkeeper required to be named if three haven’t been registered on the A list.
Gerrard will have to leave some first-team players out – although potential Rangers exits for some of his fringe players could make the process a little bit easier.
Of the current first-team squad, five players would be counted as homegrown at the club – Allan McGregor, Nathan Patterson, Stephen Kelly, Glenn Middleton and Robby McCrorie – while Scott Arfield, Ryan Jack, Jake Hastie and Scott Wright make up the remainder of the homegrown quota.
That would allow Rangers to use up all 25 spots in the A list – but how will Gerrard’s completed squad look this time next week?
Here’s Steven Gerrard’s Rangers squad as it stands ahead of the Champions League registration deadline:
Goalkeepers
Allan McGregor (Homegrown – club)
Jon McLaughlin
Andy Firth
Robby McCrorie (Homegrown – club)
Defenders
James Tavernier
Calvin Bassey
Filip Helander
Connor Goldson
Nathan Patterson (Homegrown – club)
Niko Katic
Leon Balogun
Borna Barisic
Jack Simpson
George Edmundson
Midfielders
John Lundstram
Ianis Hagi
Ryan Jack (Homegrown – nation)
Steven Davis
Joe Aribo
Glen Kamara
Scott Wright (Homegrown – nation)
Stephen Kelly (Homegrown – club)
Scott Arfield (Homegrown – nation)
Nnamdi Ofoborh
Attackers
Jermain Defoe
Cedric Itten
Ryan Kent
Alfredo Morelos
Brandon Barker
Jordan Jones
Kemar Roofe
Fashion Sakala
Jake Hastie (Homegrown – nation)
Glenn Middleton (Homegrown – club)
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