Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s confirmation some days ago that Jermain Defoe had been ‘relieved’ of his coaching duties and would now only be used as a player is, in part, a damning indictment of how ineffective the striker has actually been in that role at Ibrox.

We have a lot of respect for Defoe – he’s been a model pro, but the past 6 months of him haven’t been the best. The Sky Sports punditry has divided some fans, and the lack of goals since he became striker coach have contributed to doubts about his effectiveness in the role, and value for money we’ve had since he got his extension.

He’s always been a gentleman, let’s be clear, and as a professional there are few better in the game, but his transition to coaching has been abandoned by Rangers and GVB has now confirmed he will only be used as a player.

Of course, Gio wants his own staff around him, but then equally David McCallum and Colin Stewart are both very much still part of the setup at Ibrox and didn’t go south to England a few weeks ago, so Defoe’s reshuffle is hard to see as anything aside a demotion.

In terms of attacking quality, we have Alfredo Morelos, Fashion Sakala, and Kemar Roofe as options. We also have Cedric Itten out on loan, if he’s to stay at Ibrox under the new regime.

This leaves Defoe a bit expendable. But the contract is a whopping one so it’s not a situation we can resolve quickly.

We know the fans generally love the man, but as a player he’s seen better days.

And Gio’s restructure of him means he plays no further part on the coaching staff and we’re not sure what he can add to the playing staff.

Intriguing.