Was Michael O’Halloran destined to struggle at Rangers? Under Mark Warburton’s tactics, the answer appears to be yes.
In September 2015, St Johnstone cruised to a 3-1 win at Ibrox in the League Cup third round and there was no doubt about the star of the show. Michael O’Halloran created the opener and instilled insomnia in the Rangers backline with his relentless, direct running.
It was no coincidence that, just four months later, Rangers paid half a million to bring him to Ibrox, as reported by the Daily Record.
Yet, after just over a year, O’Halloran’s time with the Glasgow giants already appears to be running out. According to the Daily Record, the 26-year-old has been banished to the reserves by manager Pedro Caixinha after failing to show up for an Under-20 match earlier in the week – though reports suggested that the reason was a simple breakdown in communication.
Yet, even before this incident, O’Halloran’s Rangers future appeared uncertain. Back in January, the Daily Record claimed that the winger was being targeted by four Scottish Premiership clubs with Rangers boss Mark Warburton, who barely played him in the first half of the season, willing to sanction a loan.
And Dave Mackay, O’Halloran’s former team-mate at St Johnstone, believes his direct style meant it always unlikely he would fit into Warburton’s passing philosophy.
“Michael has never really had a great chance in the Rangers first team as far as I can see,” Mackay told the Daily Record. “Warburton signed him and a lot of that was maybe to do with a League Cup tie we played at Ibrox and absolutely destroyed Rangers in a 3-1 win.
“He tore Rangers apart with his pace playing through the middle causing them one problem after another. Warburton must have known the type of player he was signing. His teams could sometimes play tippy-tappy passing and pass for the sake of it at times and that just is not Michael’s game.”
Although you’d think the more fast-paced attacking philosophy introduced by Caixinha could get the best out of the flying winger. Refusing to give him a second chance could come back to haunt them.
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