Two weeks after the Scottish Cup was won, there has yet to be an announcement on the future of Allan McGregor, the legendary Gers stopper who, reportedly, has been offered a new contract.
Putting two and two together suggests that he won’t be around next season though given that we continue to get linked with keepers of the calibre required to be our future number one.
I’ve made no secret of my desire for Jon McLaughlin to inherit McGregor’s squad number, however, with rumours of our interest in Sam Johnstone refusing to go away, we have now been linked with a fellow England international in recent days.
Jack Butland – with nine England caps – was, at one point, seen as the natural replacement for Joe Hart between the sticks for his country, however, injury and loss of form saw him drop down the pecking order, it didn’t help that his club also got relegated to the Championship before a move to Crystal Palace saw him no longer command a regular starting role.
For those that might be sceptical about the link, Alan Nixon of The Sun suggested that a loan-to-buy deal could be on the cards with Johnstone, ironically, tipped to move to Selhurst Park.
Butland might have only made 17 appearances over the last couple of seasons but Hart’s form was even worse prior to moving to Parkhead, it’s not an easy position to play one week then not play again for another month regardless of how easy McLaughlin has made it look deputising for McGregor.
Competition for places is always healthy and I wouldn’t be against the signing of Butland, at 29-years old he has plenty of time on his hands and was once valued as high as £19.8million just a few years ago, getting him in on loan first would be a clever move though, especially if he is being lined up as the man to replace a future Rangers hall of famer.