James McFadden plays down Graeme Shinnie’s Scotland chances if he joins Rangers

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Aberdeen captain Graeme Shinnie has been touted to move to Scottish Premiership rivals Rangers in the summer.

Sky Sports pundit James McFadden has played down the thought that Rangers target Graeme Shinnie will see his Scotland chances improve if he were to move to Ibrox in the summer.

The 27-year-old Aberdeen captain’s contract at Pittodrie runs out in the summer [transfermarkt] and the blue half of Glasgow could be his next potential destination, according to the Scottish Sun.

Shinnie is enjoying a successful season from an individual perspective, where he is being played in a number of roles, but mainly he has played in front of the back four.

Speaking to SPFL Matters on Sky Sports Football (08/03/2019 at 6:20 pm), Scotland assistant manager, McFadden shared his thoughts on Shinnie, Rangers and his international chances.

“He is massively important to Aberdeen,” McFadden told SPFL Matters. “He is a player that can play numerous positions. He is so reliable. He’s been a massive player for Aberdeen and he’s been linked with Rangers and further afield.

“I think he will be a huge loss. They will be desperate to tie him down. I know that they [Aberdeen] tried to open talks [about his contract] at the start of the season and he indicated he wanted to see what his options were in January

“No, I don’t think so [moving to Rangers will help increase his Scotland chances]. He has been in the squads. He’s not there on token gesture. He is there on merit. At this minute in time, there are other midfielders ahead of him.

“We know what he can do. But I don’t think the fact that he moves to Rangers it will mean that he’ll play more for Scotland.”

Shinnie, who can also operate as a left-back, made his debut for the national side in May 2018 and he has since made five appearances for his country [transfermarkt].

Given the quality of players playing in the left-sided full-back position, it is very difficult for the Don’s captain to break into Scotland’s starting XI.

But given the fact that he can play various roles, he will be looking to make a name for himself in Alex McLeish’s XI, with the international fixtures set to take place at the end of this month.

Nonetheless, over the course of the season for Aberdeen, Shinnie has played 38 games in all competitions, scoring four goals and supplying his teammates with the same amount of assists [transfermarkt].