Of the 11 players who started during Rangers topsy-turvy 3-2 win over Hibernian on Thursday night – their first game back after the World Cup break and their first since the return of Mick Beale to Ibrox – no fewer than six are due to leave the club during the summer of 2023.
Ryan Kent, Ryan Jack, Alfredo Morelos and Allan McGregor are all entering the final few months of their contracts. James Sands and Malik Tillman, meanwhile, are only on loan from New York City FC and Bayern Munich respectively.
The size of the challenge facing Beale and sporting director Ross Wilson, then, cannot be underestimated.
Especially when you consider that Scott Arfield, Steven Davis, John Lundstram, Borna Barisic and Jon McLaughlin are also due to leave between now and July 2024. That is without mentioning the uncertainty facing Glen Kamara either, linked with clubs in Serie A and La Liga.
Can Rangers take a leaf out of Celtic’s book?
Now, the Ange Postecoglou revolution down the road at Celtic should act as proof that, if the recruitment department are at the top of their game, big changes can be made almost overnight. The Hoops complated no fewer than 14 first-team additions during 2021/22, and ended the campaign with a league and cup double.
Whether Rangers can take a leaf out of Celtic’s book, and find their own Kyogo Furuhashi, Cameron Carter-Vickers or Matt O’Riley, remains to be seen. Rangers’ recent history in the transfer market certainly contains more ‘misses’ than ‘hits’ after all.
And while Celtic cast their net far and wide – from Russia to Japan, Israel to Canada – Beale appears to be looking closer to home.
“I think a strong Rangers has always had key Scottish players,” the former QPR boss tells Football Scotland. “It is important we have that. Certainly, for the make-up of our squad for European football, we need to have the right quota.
“I do think as a big club – the biggest club in Scotland – we need Scottish players in our squad for sure.”
Mick Beale’s homegrown revolution
Kenny McLean, then, is one to keep an eye on. Out of contract in July; the experienced Norwich City midfielder has been capped 28 times by Scotland, spent time in Rangers’ academy as a youngster, and has royal blue blood running through his veins.
“I get asked that so much, honestly,” McLean tells the Talk Norwich Podcast when about a potential return to Glasgow. “Would I love it one day? Of course. If you’re brought up and that’s who you support, then of course I would. My family would be over the moon, I’m sure.”
According to The Express, Rangers may look to sign McLean on a pre-contract agreement. The 30-year-old, should his dream move become a reality, can provide some much-needed experience and big-game nous to a side set to lose their most battlescarred performers in Davis and McGregor.
Ryan Porteous, a player at the other end of his career, is another who could join Beale’s homegrown revolution. Like McLean, Porteous will be a free-agent sooner rather later, having turned down the chance to extend his contract at Hibernian. The 23-year-old scored and shone vs Rangers in a new-look defensive midfield role last week, and could potentially step into Sands’ shoes; offering cover at the back and in the centre of the park.
Small fees, big rewards
In contrast, Ahmed Kendouci, Nicolas Raskin and Benedito ‘Beni’ Mukendi would be more, let’s say, left-field additions. But Beale needs only look across Glasgow to realise how much value can be found in the overseas market.
Beni, a 20-year-old Angolan who plays in Portugal for CF Trofense, could reportedly cost just £500,000. Per The Sun, Rangers are preparing a ‘serious bid’ in the New Year. Beni, stylish, composed and cultured, looks every inch a potential Kamara replacement. Raskin, meanwhile, could produce a more-than passable impression of a fit-and-firing Ryan Jack.
A ball-winner and a ball-player. A distributor, a dribbler and a destroyer; Raskin is the sort of all-action, high-octane, jack-of-all-trades enforcer who would add some thrust, energy and speed to an ageing and rather one-paced engine room.
According to DH Net, Belgian outfit Standard Liege wanted £5 million for Raskin last summer. Now, after contract talks collapsed, the Belgium U21 international could be available for a fraction of that fee.
‘Out of this world’
Football Scotland throws another lesser-known name into the ring; that of EF Setif talisman Ahmed Kendouci. Dubbed ‘the best player’ in Algeria’s top flight, the stylish attacking midfielder has eight goals and 11 games this season.
“His creative passing figures are out of this world,” stats website Total Football Analysis explains of Kendouci. “He has a top passing quality to get the ball into dangerous positions and a great view of the pitch. His great delivery from set pieces also contributes to these figures.
“Kendouci has the technical quality to manipulate the ball in tight spaces and escape pressure. He’s also very creative with his first touch. He can leave players behind with unexpected flicks. And he carries the ball forward at a very good speed.
“But apart from creating chances, Kendouci also stands out as a finisher himself. He gets into the box a lot and poses a big goal threat.”
A new look attacking partnership
Football Scotland believe that Rangers are confident a deal is there to be done in January. Though ES Setif would rather sell than let Kendouci go in an initial loan-to-buy deal. A Kendouci-Jerry Yates partnership, meanwhile, could strike fear into the heart of Premiership defences.
Beale admits that he is keen to adopt an old-school front-two partnership at Ibrox, and Yates has shone south of the border in a 4-4-2 system at Blackpool. Flexible enough to play out wide as well, Yates is joint-second in the Championship’s Golden Boot race with nine goals to his game. And The Sun’s Alan Nixon believes that Rangers are willing to part with £2 million in an attempt to bring him to Ibrox, potentially as a replacement for Morelos or Roofe.
One of the big question marks hanging over this Rangers side, however, lies at the other end of the pitch. The Europa League runners-up are yet to be linked with any new goalkeepers since the summer window closed, but Rangers did hand 24-year-old Robby McCrorie a new deal until the summer of 2024 in October.
A show of faith in their next number one, perhaps?
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