Rangers need to bring a playmaker to Ibrox in January.
Rangers won’t be winning the Scottish League Cup this season after losing 1-0 to Aberdeen on Sunday afternoon, with Steven Gerrard needing to land more signings in 2019 even after 15 additions already.
The Gers dominated possession but had no cutting edge against Aberdeen, and ex-Rangers youngster Lewis Ferguson hit the sucker punch, landing the winner for the Dons at Hampden Park.
The result and performance summed up Rangers’ lack of creativity, especially after a 0-0 draw with Spartak Moscow just days earlier, which showed the same problems.
It’s now imperative that Gerrard finds a creative midfielder to supply his front line, and having watched England Under-21’s beat Scotland 2-0 earlier this month, Everton’s Kieran Dowell should be a target.
Dowell scored a stunning goal in that win for England’s Under-21’s, and Gerrard should be well aware of the midfielder from his time on Merseyside with Liverpool.
Dowell is now 21 and needs to be playing football regularly, but finds himself on the fringes of the Everton side, and he may be perfect for Rangers in terms of heading to Ibrox and building a name for himself in a key role in Gerrard’s side.
Skilful and dangerous from long range, Dowell looks to have a huge future, but with Rangers having money in the bank from their Europa League run, they should dangle a considerable fee in front of Everton for their homegrown talent.
Landing Dowell and playing him as a creative midfielder would ease the burden on Lassana Coulibaly in midfield, as he has been having to do defensive work and attempt to go forward, which doesn’t really suit him.
Everton may want to keep Dowell, but after watching him in action earlier this month, Gerrard should be looking to land him in January – and rather than sign another loan player, a permanent bid should be Rangers’ target as they can offer Dowell regularly playing time for years to come.
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