Nathan Patterson sends message to Andy Firth after Rangers confirm exit
Rangers confirmed on Friday evening (3 June) that goalkeeper Andy Firth was allowed to leave the club following the expiry of his contract.
Defender Leon Balogun was also allowed to depart after he became a free agent.
Firth took to Instagram to express a heartfelt message. Nathan Patterson, who joined Everton from the Gers in the January window, responded to his post.
Firth penned an emotional message: “Today is the day it’s time to move on, three and a half years ago I was signed for Rangers by my idol. It felt like a dream straight away, but it’s turned out to be bigger and better than anything I could of imagined.
“I have loved every second of being a Ranger, it’s been the best time of my life! I want to thank all my amazing teammates, both Stevie (Steven Gerrard), Gio (Giovanni van Bronckhorst) and their backroom staff, and all of the staff at Ibrox and the training centre, with a special mention to the Kaiser.
“There really are some amazing people at this football club, who made me feel at home and made it feel so special every day.
“I’ve been told many times I’m living the dream, and I have the best job in the world, and all of you are 110% right. I’ve been part of some special days and nights, from 55, big European nights, all the way through to ending in Seville & the Cup Final win.
“There are memories I will cherish for the rest of my life. It’s been an honour to be part of this institution, and I thank all of the fans from the bottom of my heart for the way you’ve made me feel in my time at the club.
“Time for the next chapter, and I’m excited to see what’s next.”
Patterson responded: “Good luck mate.”
Summer window taking shape
Firth was three choice goalkeeper at the club. The 25-year-old has spent the last three and a half years at Rangers where he was a backup option for Allan McGregor and Jon McLaughlin.
He further dropped down the pecking order behind Robby McCrorie, and it was the right decision taken by the club to not renew his deal.
He has hardly featured for the Gers, and it comes as a big surprise that he stayed on so many years without even managing 10 games for the club. However, it seems, that he was a very popular figure among the players.
The summer transfer window is now taking a nice shape. Rangers have already secured a long-term deal for Connor Goldson, while at the same time they’re offloading players to make room for new additions.
There’s still a lot of work to be done. Van Bronckhorst is unlikely to be given a massive transfer kitty, so he will have to be smart in the market.
Rangers could also cash in on players like Ryan Kent, Alfredo Morelos and Glen Kamara to raise funds for new signings.
In other Rangers news, former coach Michael Beale has posted a memorable tribute to one key Ibrox figure after news of a major development.