Slightly off-topic this one, but Ashley Young starting at right-back for Everton at 38 shows just how badly Rangers’ players have actually done in England and overseas and how this club has not been producing quality talent for a long, long time.
Nathan Patterson – 27 appearances in 2 years for Everton, and it’s not just injury – Seamus Coleman was preferred before, and now ancient Ashley. Is only fringe for his national team.
Joe Aribo, we already know what a disaster he’s been in England, completely out of his depth at both Premier League and Championship level.
Calvin Bassey – a painful dud in Holland, and now a fringe man at Fulham.
Ryan Kent – hasn’t exactly lit up Turkey and has already ended up in a spat with the manager.
Alfredo Morelos – couldn’t get a move to a decent club, ended up in the backwater of Brazil and now may end up without a club at all.
All the high-profile exits of the younger ‘talented’ players Rangers have seen have led to fails. Every single one.
Even the players sold at big money and predicted by extremely confident fans to go onto big and better things just haven’t.
What has happened at Rangers that we just don’t produce great players any more?
Once upon a time Barry Ferguson, Carlos Cuellar and Allan Hutton were our level, and we sold them all for big money and all three had an impact down south. Ok, maybe not legendary Premier League level, but they weren’t fails. They shone for us in the Champions League and we’re just talking Rangers-level players.
Davo, McGregor – guys like these were top players and shone in the Premier League back in the day.
But all the stuff we have now we might get big money for, but they all crash and burn when they leave.
But Celtic? Miles ahead. They’ve basically had no fails in their sales, only Tierney has sunk a bit as a result of injury.
But Ajer, Armstrong, Frimpong, Dembele, VVD – all their high-profile captures thrive and make them big money, and then go to England or the continent and do the same.
Rangers need to scout better, produce better. The manager is not a magician who can make Calvin Bassey into a footballer.
Because on this front, we’re miles behind that lot.