McCulloch questions whether Alves has been truly committed to Rangers

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Rangers could see defender Bruno Alves leave Ibrox this summer.

Former Rangers captain Lee McCulloch has told the Glasgow Evening Times that he isn’t sure that Bruno Alves’ heart has been in the cause at Ibrox.

Rangers ended their season with a 5-5 draw at Hibernian on Sunday afternoon, and sealed third place, meaning they will be back in the qualifying rounds of the Europa League next term.

With new manager Steven Gerrard appointed, Rangers are approaching a huge summer, and whilst the focus will be on new signings, some players will be offloaded too.

Rangers will be hoping to see a number of under-performing players leave Ibrox this summer, and one player who be primed for the exit is defender Bruno Alves.

The Portugal international, who cold feature at this summer’s World Cup, was a key signing for Pedro Caixinha last summer, and was expected to be the leader Rangers needed in their defence.

However, the 36-year-old hasn’t impressed for most of the season and could leave despite having one year left on his Ibrox deal, with the former Porto star no doubt looking for guaranteed playing time so late in his career.

Now, former Rangers captain Lee McCulloch has told the Glasgow Evening Times that he thinks it’s a shame that Alves looks to be leaving, as he feels he contributes to the game when he plays and does still have some of his quality left in the tank.

However, McCulloch did add that he thinks Alves’ heart may not have been in the Rangers cause, suggesting that he hasn’t been fully committed this term, and moving him on may be difficult due to his wages.

“Bruno Alves might be expected to leave, and that is something of a shame for me, because I don’t think that Rangers ever really got to see the best of him because of his injuries,” said McCulloch. “Any time I have watched him he has contributed to the game, albeit that was sometimes for the opposition, but there is no doubt that he has been a top-level player and some of that ability is still in the tank.”

“I thought he did really well on Sunday and steadied the ship when he came on. He obviously has another year on his contract, but I just wonder if his heart has really been in it. Moving him on may be difficult, and ripping up his contract would be pricey. Hopefully the club and the player can reach some sort of agreement that is best for both parties, but I don’t think it would necessarily be the worst thing if he did stay around,” he added.