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Contract chaos the key objective for Wilson and Rangers

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Right then Mr Wilson, now that the nonsense of the transfer window is over, you can get back to proper business and get some new contracts sorted out for key players who’s are soon to expire.

The first name at the top of the list has to be Connor Goldson, not only is he the vice-captain who never misses a minute of football, but he has less than 12 months to run on his current deal and will be able to speak to clubs about a possible pre-contract move in January – in such a big season we need him fully focussed on the job in hand, securing the league title and the Champions League.

Allan McGregor will be allowed to make his own decision but I just can’t see him playing on next season, his deputy, Jon McLaughlin should be offered a new contract to reward him for his contribution so far but also to recognise that he is a zero risk replacement for the Gers number one, we have seen across the city what can happen if you gamble on such an integral position, Robby McCrorie proving in the last two games that he can also be trusted to make the step up if required.

Leon Balogun showed against Celtic that he still has plenty to offer, the club has a one-year option at the end of this season which I’d expect us to take up because, like McLaughlin, he is a safe option in the heart of defence as understudy to Filip Helander – Jack Simpson still has some way to go before he can be trusted on a regular basis and we have yet to see how Niko Katic has recovered from knee surgery.

Scott Arfield and Steven Davis are slightly different, both are highly respected, experienced members of the squad but it may be that in Juninho Bacuna and John Lundstram, we have already bought replacements for the former, the Northern Ireland skipper, on the other hand, continues to defy physics. It wouldn’t surprise me to still see him orchestrating things from the middle of the park at 37-years old.

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The list of players who’s contracts expire in two-years time is also an elephant in the room; Alfredo Morelos, Ryan Kent, Glen Kamara, Joe Aribo, Ryan Jack, Filip Helander and Niko Katic, I’d expect most of these to be dealt with as a matter of urgency now that we know what our budget will be.

We can’t afford to allow what has happened at Celtic to happen to us, losing the likes of Kris Ajer, Ryan Christie and Odsonne Edouard for a fraction of what they would have got had they been under longer contracts, it’s a very basic rule of football management and one that I trust Ross Wilson to have in hand.

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