With little over a couple of months left before the end of the season Rangers wage bill could soon be about to get an awful lot lighter given the extensive list of names who find themselves out of contract in the summer.
Talks will continue for players like Alfredo Morelos and Ryan Kent, however, it is those who are no longer considered as key players who might have altogether shorter meetings.
Writing for Football Insider, transfer correspondent Fraser Fletcher has claimed that six Rangers players will have their futures decided this month as the clear out begins:
“Six Rangers stars are all set to hold sit-down talks with the club this month to decide their future at Ibrox.
“Steven Davis, Ryan Jack, Scott Arfield, Filip Helander, Allan McGregor, and Kieran Wright are all out of contract at the end of the season and will discuss if they will be staying with the club hierarchy.”
Davis has already started his coaching journey with the club and, after undergoing major knee surgery, it could be anywhere up to a year before he is capable of playing again, by that time he will be 39-years old – there is no way, regardless of his previous quality, that a new deal should be entertained. A place on the coaching staff awaits.
For Arfield, his impact as a sub is almost unrivalled but when we added Todd Cantwell, he slipped further down the pecking order. Ianis Hagi is getting fitter and Alex Lowry should also be getting more minutes. He will still be more than capable of contributing at this level and won’t be short of offers though.
Helander, McGregor and Wright should all be relatively short conversations, thank them for their service and move on, but Jack is a more difficult case. Only those behind the scenes know the true extent of his fitness and whether or not he is worth another 12-months.
Still, having said that, I didn’ think McGregor, Arfield or Davis should have been given new contracts last summer either and we all know how that turned out.