Memory Lane and Rangers Legends – who remembers Daniel Cousin?

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Memory Lane and Rangers Legends – who remembers Daniel Cousin?
Glasgow Rangers' forward Daniel Cousin (2ndR) is congratulated by his teammates after scoring a goal during their UEFA Champions League Group E match against Lyon at Gerland' Stadium, in Lyon, 02 October 2007. AFP PHOTO / FRED DUFOUR (Photo credit should read FRED DUFOUR/AFP via Getty Images)

Recently Ibrox Noise discussed two things:

One, the fact we don’t cover retro topics enough, and two, we asked you all who your preference back in the present team would be if the weekend’s Legends players were fit and young again.

So we’ll cover two birds with one stone, by picking our choice:

Daniel Cousin.

Now, Michael Mols and Barry Ferguson were two monstrous players, but Mols’ flame was extinguished too early that fateful night in Munich, while Ferguson may have been gigantic but we’re not sure right now we actually need a player like him when Todd Cantwell is playing that role with gusto at present.

So we’re going with Cousin, whose spell at Ibrox may be before a few of our readers’ time, but the big standout was how huge this incredible player was for Rangers, particularly against Lyon at their old Stade Gerland back in the day.

That night, in the Champions League, remains the biggest individual 90-minute result Rangers have had pretty much since 72, given how big and strong Lyon were in those days, and the fact we did it on their patch. In the Champions League.

But Cousin? His goal that night summed up the brute he was up top – dominating their backline, controlling it on his chest, then battering it into the corner of the net from an angle.

He only scored 13 in 40 for Rangers, and that was his only career Champions League goal, but the guy was a total monster up front, and was the single reason Rangers got that gigantic draw as well v Barca at Ibrox. He did an incredible job killing Barca’s entire backline, holding the ball up constantly and relieving the insane pressure on our defence.

Lionel Messi infamously called us ‘anti-football’ (he hates Rangers btw, always has, and he loves Celtic, self-confessed) and he can go and take a running jump to himself, we’ve no time for him, but we love the fact he came to Ibrox and was outshone by big Danny Cousin who owned the whole visiting rearguard all night.

Cousin’s star at Ibrox didn’t sparkle too long, and he wasn’t universally loved by the fans for being a bit lazy at times, and sometimes having the ‘I don’t want to be here’ look on his face.

But when he was in the mood, in the zone, he was completely unstoppable, and he’s another, like Mols, who, for different reasons, could have been a true Rangers legend.

If Cousin had truly applied himself and committed to the club, throwing his heart and soul into Ibrox, he would have been an incredible player.

His apathy in general held him back overall, and he never achieved in the game what someone of his power, pace, and ability should have done. One Intertoto cup in in 2005 with Lens was all he had to speak of.

Should have been much more.

What might have been eh?

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