Athletic journo: Rangers undecided on whether they should sign Katic replacement
Rangers are still undecided about whether or not they should sign a replacement for Nikola Katic this summer, according to The Athletic Jordan Campbell.
The Croatian defender will be sidelined for the “foreseeable future” after picking up an injury in training at the end of last month.
That leaves Steven Gerrard with just Connor Goldson, George Edmundson, and Filip Helander as his only senior central defensive options going into the new campaign.
But despite his lack of depth in that area, it is understood that there are no concrete plans for the Gers to bring in another defender just yet.
Writing in a Q&A for The Athletic, Campbell said: “I personally think Rangers need a player who can challenge for a starting spot brought in on loan or on a short-term deal.
“Not sure yet whether Rangers have made up their mind up on that one yet.”
Should Rangers sign another defender?
So much of the debate hinges on how long Katic will be sidelined for.
The club have said we won’t see the 23-year-old for the “foreseeable future”, but there is no definite way of knowing how long that will actually be.
Going into the new season – with a league title to contest and European football to consider – with just three centre-backs feels like a bad idea, but if Katic is back by the end of September, for instance, could we struggle on without him for a couple of months?
Potentially, but we’d be inclined to argue that we should sign back-up anyway.
This season is probably the most important that Rangers have faced in a long, long time.
There is so much at stake, and we need to be covered for all eventualities with a belt and braces approach to building the squad this summer.
Having another centre-back certainly wouldn’t hurt our chances of dethroning Celtic and having a decent continental run in 2020/21.
In other Rangers news, Ibrox View: Rangers could get 20/21 boost after transfer reports on rival striker.