Rangers goalkeeper Lewis Budinauckas signs new one-year deal
Rangers goalkeeper Lewis Budinauckas has put pen to paper on a new one-year deal at Ibrox to remain in the club’s youth setup.
The 19-year-old played just three times for the B team in 2021-22 with all appearances coming in the Challenge Cup where he conceded nine times in those matches.
That is an average of three per game but despite those disappointing returns, he has been given one more year to prove himself after a brief emergency loan spell at Raith Rovers in March.
Rangers B and Academy confirmed the news via their Twitter account and chances could become more frequent for the Scot next season.
Allan McGregor’s future is uncertain with the 40-year-old potentially contemplating retirement but Giovanni van Bronckhorst will be delving into the transfer market for a new number one this summer.
Give him time
It’s easy to reject players far too early in their careers and we have to be careful not to make that same mistake with Budinauckas here.
Yes, his 2021-22 season left a lot to be desired for the B team but there are very few players who don’t have a poor season at one point or another in their careers and that has to be excused.
If he comes back in 2022-23 and is equally as disappointing then there is reason to say it isn’t going to work but we have to remember how young he is and the room he has to grow.
Goalkeepers always tend to flourish later than outfield players so there is still plenty of time for him to go from the B team back up to a potential future Ibrox hero if he devotes himself enough.
He won’t be under consideration for next season in the first team and it could take three or four years before he really is but if he makes it that far, then he has just as good a chance as any of being the number one for the Gers.
In other Rangers news, Cedric Itten could be set to return to his homelnad of Switzerland with recent reports linking him to one of the nation’s biggest clubs.