Rangers ace backed for new Ibrox deal by Northern Irish icon
Rangers midfielder Steven Davis has been encouraged to keep on playing by former St. Johnstone manager fellow Northern Irishman Steve Lomas.
The 37-year-old joined the Gers in 2019 from Southampton and he has featured over 100 times for the club but he has struggled to find regular playtime this season.
He last played for Giovanni van Bronckhorst in the Europa League against Lyon where he replaced Glen Kamara at half-time.
Lomas though still sees Davis providing a lot of value to the Dutchman’s squad and thinks he should be offered a contract extension at Ibrox.
“I hope Steven doesn’t hang the boots up,” said Lomas to the Belfast Telegraph.
“His performances for Rangers suggest he has a lot more to offer.
“In England, he might struggle with the sheer amount of games but Rangers tend to dominate the ball and it’s a good place for Steven to continue playing.
“There’s no reason why he can’t continue for the next campaign and I hope that he gets a new deal. We’d love him to stay on as a player but he could be a mentor too.
“He has a lot more to offer either as a player or in a different role.”
The necessity of experience
At 37 years of age, Davis is quite obviously closer to the end of his professional career than the start but that doesn’t mean it needs to be accelerated.
He is still performing to high levels in a Rangers side that is winning for fun in the Scottish Premiership but he brings more than just ability to the table.
His experience is something money can’t buy and while he is still capable, van Bronckhorst would be foolish to let him leave on a free at the end of the season.
A lot of teams seem obsessed recently with having as many young players as possible but as one Alan Hansen once said: “you can’t win anything with kids.”
Without the experience of the likes of Davis, the youngsters at the club wouldn’t know which way to turn and they would get overwhelmed quickly.
The wise old heads in every team are the most underappreciated and their absence is felt hard when they go.
There is no overbearing pressure to get Davus off the wage bill or replace him in the squad so it would seem bonkers to do so right now.
In other Rangers news, Jermain Defoe has revealed the touching act Rangers players did when he left the club last week.