Successful Rangers teams have always had a core of players either brought up through the ranks of the youth team or harvested from domestic rivals to play either starring or supporting roles in match day squads.
Walter Smith was especially fond of this tactic and his famous 1992/93 side could have as many as five players picked from neighbouring sides – I’ll let you work out who they were – whilst having the likes of Neil Murray, Gary McSwegan and Steven Pressley making up the numbers, to varying levels of success.
Back to modern day Rangers and Steven Gerrard, or Mark Allen, depending on who you believe, has been responsible for a similar signing strategy, but it’s fair to say that it has been a far from successful tactic with Greg Stewart, Jordan Jones and Jake Hastie remaining peripheral figures at the club, although in fairness Glen Kamara and Ryan Jack are both trusted lieutenants of the gaffer – a forty percent strike rate is hardly cause for celebration though, even less when you consider Kyle Lafferty and Greg Docherty.
There is one man who will line up against Rangers today who could be the latest to join a long list of players to cross the SPFL divide and join the Light Blues, in the shape of Motherwell’s “irreplaceable” Allan Campbell, the Scotland Under-21 international is into the last 12 months of his contract at Fir Park and would offer a dynamism and physicality that has been missing since Ross McCrorie headed to Aberdeen.
Should Rangers go for Allan Campbell?
Yes
No
He differs in that he is more refined in possession than his engine room partner at international level, and although McCrorie has been in fine goal scoring form for his new club, Campbell offers a bigger goal threat too.
Valued at £900,000 by Transfermarkt, it will be interesting to see what the 22-year old’s next step will be – after being offered a new deal – and whether or not Gerrard will make a move for the player who could let Steven Davis take a well deserved break from time to time.