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“The penny’s dropped” – Hutton praises turnaround of Gers fans favourite

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When Rangers signed John Lundstram last summer it was seen as a decent bit of business, a player with top flight experience and ready to go straight into the starting XI rather than being a project player who might take a season or two to adjust to the demands of the club.

Coming into a side that was out of form and unsettled plus failure to qualify for the Champions League immediately put pressure on the new recruits with Lundstram bearing the brunt of the criticism, this only increased after a silly sending off against Alashkert in the Europa League play-off.

A run of games in the autumn showed promise but he soon found himself back on the bench to the extent that it looked like he might have to move on only for Giovanni van Bornckhorst to reinstate him, and it’s safe to say that he hasn’t looked back since.

Speaking to Football Insider, Alan Hutton has praised the midfielder’s turnaround to the extent that he is now one of the first names on the team sheet:

“We all knew that there was a really good player in there. I think, finally, the penny’s just dropped.

“He’s realised the size of the club that he’s at and everything that goes along with that. He has grown in stature. I mean, for me, he’s now that midfield enforcer.

“But not only that, he’s got the ability to pass, to score a goal and to influence games. He’s feeling the love now. He obviously found it difficult at the start about what it is like to play for Rangers.

“He was up and down with his performances but now, he has really grasped that. The fans are showing him the love back and he’s feeling that.

“That makes him play to the best of his ability. You can see every time he walks out onto that pitch he loves every moment of it. It’s all down to him and fair play, he’s work hard.

“It’s amazing to see how the fans are now reacting. Even at the game on Sunday, he wasn’t even playing and they were singing his name. It was crazy, it must be one of those goosebump moments where you just feel invincible. That must be the way he is feeling at this moment in time.”

Lundstram is right, he’s become a genuine fans’ favourite at the club and this will only intensify if he helps us to win the Europa League next week.

He’s not flashy by any stretch of the imagination but his physicality, tenacity, drive and ability to contribute at both ends of the park makes him the short of all-action midfielder that we have been crying out for for years, I can’t help but look at his pairing with Ryan Jack and think of bygone days with Stuart McCall and Ian Ferguson providing the platform for the likes of Paul Gascoigne and Brian Laudrup to build on.

It’s been an incredible turnaround but one that will only truly be complete if he lifts two trophies next week, then he really would be the best on earth.

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