When Britain voted to leave the European Union, there were always going to be issues relating to football. Work permits had always been tightly controlled, however, it was easy to appeal them when they were rejected based on non-tangible aspects like potential.
Rangers have a mixed history with the process, for instance, when we had Mario Jardel signed and sealed, we missed out on a goal every game striker and the natural successor to replace Ally McCoist because Kilmarnock were granted the last work permit available for non-EU players – the one that got away.
What we have seen is the SFA introducing rules that aren’t as stringent compared to England which means that players like Antonio Colak can be signed for Rangers whereas for a team like Southampton, they wouldn’t be able to. It’s not just as simple as being able to sign them because of beneficial work permit regulations though.
Speaking to Football Insider, finance expert Kieran Maguire has claimed that we are finding a way around the massive financial gap on the occasions that we are competing with the vast resources of the Premier League:
“The Rangers player trading model does appear to now be offering players from Europe an opportunity to showcase themselves.
“While they won’t necessarily be offering the same type of wages that the player can expect to get in the Premier League.
“However, what they can offer the player is a slice of the transfer fee should they move on for a decent fee. That then offsets some of the wage concern.
“We have seen this in terms of the summer transfer dealings. The likes of Aribo have moved on to teams who can offer them a different football experience as players.“
As Colak has proven, there are bargains to be found if you have the right scouting network. Much though it pains me to say it, Celtic have also shown that, by casting the net further afield, quality players can be signed on a budget.
With a team full of players set to have contracts expire in the summer, Ross Wilson has a massive job on his hands with key players throughout the team needing to be replaced, spending wisely and getting good deals for Rangers has never been more important.