Steven Gerrard has been crying out for a new midfielder for some time now and you would struggle to find a Rangers fan that doesn’t agree with the gaffer’s assessment that the engine room is the main area of the field that requires an immediate upgrade – and that was before the injuries of Ryan Jack and Joe Aribo.
As if to prove a point to the board, Jamie Barjonas was the only player on the bench who plays in the middle of the park and he is miles away from impacting the first team, despite being part of the squad almost since the day the Liverpool legend arrived at Ibrox.
There have been several names linked with a move to the Light Blues in recent weeks with Preston’s Daniel Johnson, Amiens Bongani Zungu and Max Meyer of Crystal Palace all said to be on a list of names but as yet, nothing official has been announced.
Gerrard and Ross Wilson have both been at pains to reinforce that any potential signing has to fit the profile and be the right player for the club and one characteristic that should be top of the list – if it isn’t already – is resilience.
Rangers fans need only to look across the city to see how often Neil Lennon is able to field his strongest XI, the Gers boss can count the likes of Connor Goldson, James Tavernier and Alfredo Morelos as players who rarely miss games due to fitness but he needs something similar in midfield, a player that he knows can play 60 games if required,
Do we need better than Ryan Jack or someone able to play every week?
Better
Less injury prone version
We don’t need an upgrade on Ryan Jack, we need a more durable version, unfortunately for the Scotland international, since having his knee injured against Motherwell a few seasons ago, it has never been the same and between that and the frequent muscle injuries associated with the joint issue, he seems to break down just as he is coming into decent form.
Similarly, doubts are already being raised about Kemar Roofe’s ability to play week-in week-out given the number of artificial surfaces in the Scottish Premiership and his own calf problems.
Any new signing must have a history of availability, no serious injuries or occasional, niggling problems, they may cost a few pounds more but there is a reason for this – you can rely on them to be ready to play every game without having to rely on back-ups, something Johnson and Meyer can be relied up on to provide.