Last week, prior to the Aberdeen game, Giovanni van Bronckhorst was asked about his available budget this month following the sale of Nathan Patterson.
The Dutchman gave a very understated response, predictably giving very little away, but what he did say gave an indication of the Rangers manager’s thinking at this time.
As reported by Rangers Review, Gio stated:
“I think there is still a transfer budget we have for this window so we might add a player to the squad. If it’s going to happen – I don’t know but we just have to wait and see how that’ll develop in the coming weeks.”
Basically, it’s a ‘no comment’ in another form but what we do know is that the Rangers squad is somewhat bloated at present, squad players are surplus to requirements and available to other clubs. That applies to the likes of Jack Simpson, Brandon Barker, the forgotten Jake Hastie as well as Andy Firth and even Niko Katic. The questionable futures of Juninho Bacuna and John Lundstram could also be decided this month.
Ross Wilson will be working hard to free up wages and expenditure in regard to those players above. The difficult part will be securing any transfer fees for most of them.
In return and of more interest to most Rangers fans, is who will be recruited. It is clear that squad filler replacements are not needed, we need quality to make a immediate impact.
At the club’s AGM in December, it was stated that player sales would see funds reinvested on the pitch. Now that needs to happen – yes, January is a tricky market and signings can’t be made for the sake of it but an injection of freshness and incision would be very welcome and would have a positive impact on the rest of the dressing room.
The time is now to add a player.
