The men who could change the Rangers

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The men who could change the Rangers

There is little doubt right now that Rangers fans are a tad divided over Mark Warburton’s current performance. Some are optimistic about next season and trust in the boss, while others feel a new manager should be in place by next campaign. But what of the players at his disposal? There has indeed been a heavy emphasis on this site of the manager, so let us switch focus on what personnel Warbs has in his squad who could make the difference for the rest of the season.

IbroxNoise highlights a number of key players and proposes how they could help improve form and make second place a little more convincing.

Joe Dodoo:

His double against Partick as a late sub showed everyone just how much quality this young 21-year old striker actually has. His first was a cracking volley and the second a finish of conviction, but the former Leicester City youth product has found chances extremely limited and finds himself on the bench every week. The kid has ability, of this there is no doubt – he is strong, he is quick, he can score goals, and he has surprisingly good positional sense, reading defences better than many of his age. If Warburton was to give this lad a bit more of a chance, he might just be surprised at how much he can deliver.

Philippe Senderos:

Despite everyone being convinced he has no future at Ibrox (and his manager’s disinterest in him seeming to back this up) Senderos’ ability is surely in little doubt. He is no Maldini of course, but the Swiss cap has made over 50 appearances for his country, with experience at world cups and European championships, while starring for the likes of Valencia, Arsenal and Milan both domestically and in various European competitions. If anyone has top level wisdom and knowledge, it is the ex-Grasshoppers stopper. His debut for Rangers at Parkhead was not even that bad – two foolish acts betrayed him and it seems possible they left a sour taste in his new manager’s mouth. Either way, if Warburton wants a reliable defence that does not leak goals to the likes of Motherwell, Hamilton and Ross County, he could do worse than entrusting the 32 year old with the back line.

Kenny Miller:

Very much a part of first team affairs, Miller might not produce every single match but he is an integral part of all that is good about this Rangers team. The 37 year old stalwart is the ultimate football professional, and has impressed massively in midfield along with his more familiar striker role. His knowledge and impeccable conduct are outstanding tools along with his obvious class, and Ally really did make a wise signing bringing the former Bear back home back in 2014. He will continue to be part of everything good Rangers do.

Barrie McKay:

Recently subject to transfer speculation and with good reason, McKay is Rangers’ big asset these days. Home-grown and maturing all the time, the winger’s final delivery is his only weakness, with his vision, skill, pace, and link play all colossal assets to his team. Warburton handled his form loss earlier this season brilliantly, and it reinvigorated the forward to restore the hunger and desire. He has not looked back since and has made such a difference to Rangers’ results. Is easily worth at minimum the £6M claimed by other outlets as a (non-materialising) bid from Leipzig.

Jon Toral:

Concentration and fitness may be a concern with Rangers’ new recruit, but there is no denying his technical prowess. Some of his touches, vision, ball retention and use of it thereafter have been undeniably impressive, and while he is suffering from fading far too early in matches, it is clear when he is in the mood, he will deliver some real quality from the middle. His general lack of ability to remain in games for the duration is probably why his career has stuttered, because there is little doubting what he can bring.

Emerson Hyndman:

Provided the match-winning assist for King Kenny last weekend, and has shown some real play-building. Even against Leipzig during his brief cameo he managed a truly exquisite assist from deep, finding his man with ease, and that is a great tool for Rangers to have – a deep lying playmaker who can spot men, runs, and space and use them fully. He has already delivered more on his competitive Rangers’ debut alone than Jason Holt probably has all season.

Lee Hodson:

His struggles in breaking into Rangers’ first team are well documented, but he has only ever impressed when appearing. Not the tallest (Louis Moult beat him with too much ease last weekend) but as a right back he is simply a better player than James Tavernier – more solid at the back, more capable of reading the flank and can attack with purpose. A reinvigorated Rangers would see the Northern Irishman playing a much more active role.

Honourable mentions to the likes of Michael O’Halloran who still wants to prove himself at Ibrox, Martyn Waghorn who has lost his place but will still feel his physical strength up front can contribute something, and Harry Forrester who is just sitting on the fringes of the first team now but will be determined to show why he should be starting XI again.

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12 COMMENTS

  1. Ibrox noise agree with most of what you say here mate!On emerson hyndman we truly have a gem!That's my honest opinion on this young man.You're right,he is a deep lying playmaking midfielder,who can build play and play through the lines from a very deep starting position!I know there's no chance but i'd love us to have him on loan to us for longer!Similar to celtic's 18 months loan deal they negotiated,with man city,for patrick roberts.We'll never have young hyndman permanently but surely we can at the very least,ask bournemouth manager,eddie howe,if we can have him on loan for the full of next season,on top of the original loan deal,we currently have in place,until the end of this season.If he's not in eddie howe's first team plans for next season then surely we have a chance and can at least ask the question.If you don't ask,you'll never get!Emerson hyndman has a really BIG future in the game IMO!What do other rangers fans think regarding hyndman??

    • Wilshere is unlikely to be at Bournemouth next season as he's there on loan, so I'd expect Hyndman to replace Wilshere in the Bournemouth midfield next season as they are similar in style. I like the look of him so far, but we have no chance of keeping Hyndman on loan next season. I'd have preferred to have seen the money spent on loan deals being used to improve our scouting network, but I agree Hyndman is a decent midfielder in the Wilkins mould. However I feel that there are more important spending priorities at this time e.g. improving our scouting and signing a dominant centre half.

  2. There is no doubt we have the players. But they don't get a chance to establish themselves, are played out of position, and tactics with the amount of rotation involved is a struggle for everyone in the team. Go figure.

  3. Play Miller as a centre forward not a floating midfielder or winger etc he showed on on Saturday what he is best at we dont need any more creative or attacking midfielders what we need is a defensive midfielder who can tackle and make his mark on the opposition and why doesnt Warburton give the young lad Bates a chance at centre half cant be any worse than the others

  4. Rotation is shite, Ask any footballer. Good game one week, Not in team again, Dodoo perfect example. Deserves a chance.

  5. Agree with the you four four two give Bates a chance he's 20 odd not a kid ffs. I'm probably in a minority here but I still think Wilson is a good defender just needs the right guy beside him. And we definitely need a defensive midfielder to help out. And ffs drop holt he's been playing rubbish for too long now to keep his place Halliday ain't doing much better tbh Forrester needs more game time and dodoo I agree with that one for definite. Moh he didn't impress me last season nor this season either. But I suppose it's hard for any player to get some kind of form when he's only getting ten minutes here and there it's not enough to make a impact is it

  6. I remember the Nike Open Day way back, when Rangers paraded a young Rino Gattuso, Sergio Porrini, big Lorenzo Amoruso and finally a young 'trialist' Jonaton Johanson.
    Three defenders who graced the jersey and one attacker. Now we seem focused on attacking midfieders and strikers. None of whom will be regulars who get us off our seats two or three seasons from now. Transfer fees aside, Walter knew the strength of a team was based around a solid defense, not the lightweights we have in midfield these days.

  7. This site is in danger of becoming positive. Worth noting that everyone mentioned (apart from McKay and Miller) have been brought in by W&W. Also W&W are getting the best out of McKay and Miller – one who's at the start of his career and one who's at the end of his.
    The area though, where i agree with this site (and just about everyone else), is the defence. I just don't understand what W&W are trying to do. The Motherwell goal was Kiernan's fault; he first played them onside, and then lost his marker, Moult, leaving Hodson mismatched on the back post. The biggest mistake W&W made was selling McGregor to Hibs. He was very, very, quick (and player of the year before they let him go), something that Wilson, Kiernan, Hill and Senderos are not.

  8. Bringing the ambiance back to negative…… till W&W change the defence, all the positive vibes re players coming in, go out the window cause whatever we think, what looks good will be destroyed by the likes of Mssrs Tavenier & Kiernan. Till he realises that his defenders are all but non existant, he can bring in Messi but we will still fail miserably at the back. Shut the backdoor should be his priority this window if not, then any other outfield player being considered is a waste of time and precious money.
    Listen….we are fed up with this set up, pass pass and run out of ideas 20 yards from goal…… dominate the ball get nowhere and lose an easy goal. Really, fed up.

  9. I hate loan players giving playing time to another clubs players i hate that
    if you got to take some then 3 max no more.
    Buy what we can and get a new manager in that can turn them on i would keep what
    we have and go for it with all of them again.

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