Wes Foderingham has recently departed Ibrox and, after spending two seasons as understudy to Allan McGregor, has fired a surprising parting shot at current gaffer Steven Gerrard.
Speaking on the Open Goal podcast (and reported in The Daily Record) Foderingham explains what happened when Gerrard first took over as boss and how it affected his Rangers career:
“When Gerrard got the job I was in Dubai and he was actually staying in the same hotel as me.
“He grabbed a quick chat saying this is what he planned to do. He told me the club was 95 per cent down the road with a deal for McGregor. He said whoever deserves to play will play.
“I knew by bringing him in as manager we were going up a level and the onus was on me to raise my level.
“When McGregor came in it was always the club’s intention to sell me that summer. I had a meeting with the manager and he basically said ’you’re not my type of person’ which I found strange.
“He didn’t go into any real great depth but he questioned my willingness to be there and to fight for a position. I don’t think I showed I wasn’t willing to fight for my place.
“At this point I wasn’t even training with the main team. I trained with the goalies but when we went into the main session I had to stay over. I just couldn’t believe what was happening.
“So I thought I was leaving that summer. I spoke to my agent and he said the club wanted X amount. But no clubs were biting at that amount.
“The club said I wasn’t going on loan, they wanted that figure so I was priced out of a move at that point.
“As time goes on your price drops but it wasn’t a realistic figure for me to get out at that point.”
Foderingham played just 13 times under Gerrard due to the form of McGregor but certainly didn’t let himself down, if anything, in his limited appearances he managed to raise his profile and repair the reputation that had been battered under previous regimes.
When McGregor signed a contract extension in December 2019 the writing was on the wall for Foderingham who may have had aspirations of reclaiming his first-team position next season but will now have to move on to pastures new to get what he wants – playing regular games.
He will be content in the knowledge that – despite previous heavy defeats – his final Old Firm game in May 2019 produced a clean sheet and a stellar performance, he spent most of his time at Rangers behind a less than solid defence but can leave with his head held high after being a more than able deputy to one of the Gers all-time greats.