It is without doubt that too many Rangers players have been at Ibrox for too long. As discussed earlier, captain James Tavernier has been in Govan for almost 10 years now, while the admittedly departing Borna Barisic is at 6 years as well.
Connor Goldson is also 6 years, while Ryan Jack is hitting the 7 year mark, and John Lundstram, admittedly also exiting this summer, is onto 3 years now.
There are quite simply far too many players who are running on empty, and whose performances haven’t strictly justified such a long tenure.
If we look at the likes of Callum McGregor and James Forest over there, they’ve been there for an eternity, but they have generally contributed and been prominent players. One of them especially has been on the winning side of Old Firms for far too long.
But at Rangers?
All these long-lasting players have by no means impressed, they’ve not done an awful lot domestically aside the uniquely-strange 55 Covid season, and overall it really is about time a lot of the old guard moved on.
Kemar Roofe is also in this category, he’s onto his fourth season and expires this summer – we absolutely must not renew that one.
It’s about time Rangers sold a lot of the warhorses, let the Lundstrams and Barisics go, and kept the quality that we have while investing in a lot of new quality this summer.
Of course, many will argue with winning the league this changes – no it doesn’t.
We rested on our laurels as it was after 55 and lost all momentum that title earned us – we didn’t invest that summer at all, signing nothing but freebies.
So let’s not pretend winning the league, as unlikely as it kind of seems this season now, is a reason to suddenly trust the squad we have. The one that is clearly on its last legs.
This summer we really do need to ship out a lot of oldies, and bring in new talent.
We’re not saying wipe the lot out, because quality ‘veterans’ do still have much to bring. But that has to be the case, they have to be bringing it.
We really do get a sense of a changing of the guard this summer and the first real proper overhaul of the squad for far, far too long.
For Ibrox Noise, it’s the end of Tav, Goldson, Lundstram, Barisic, McLaughlin, Roofe, Wright, Jack, and quite a few more.
We need to freshen this up and invest in a Rangers-quality squad.
Admittedly, that doesn’t come cheap…