David Martindale uses Rangers to sign players at Livingston as £1m admission made
Livingston manager David Martindale has revealed that he uses Rangers and Celtic as a “unique selling point” to players he wants to sign, in that they will have the chance to regularly play against the two Scottish giants.
Rangers and Celtic go head to head on Saturday (8 April) amid the returning discussion of the pair moving south of the border to play in English football.
But given the huge away following that both clubs bring, Martindale believes such a scenario would be detrimental to Livingston’s operations.
“For a manager it is great to go up against these guys every year,” said Martindale, as quoted by the Glasgow Times. “It is a unique selling point to players I am trying to bring in. They get the chance to play the Old Firm and play at fantastic arenas with great atmospheres.
Martindale added: “I wouldn’t want to lose them from our game as they are huge institutions that have a massive part to play in our game. With my Livingston manager’s head on, our business model is based on away fans, it isn’t on season ticket holders.
“It’s not rocket science that if we were to lose between 24,000 to 32,000 away fans coming here every year then we would probably be in the Championship now. Because where does that money come from? How do we generate revenue like that? We would lose about £750,000 to £1million.”
Huge following
Martindale certainly has a point, with Rangers supporters backing their team even when times were tough in the lower leagues of Scottish football.
Ironically, there will be no Rangers supporters travelling to Celtic Park for their clash this weekend following the decision from the authorities to ban away fans from the remaining Old Firm league matches this season.
While many people are disappointed that Rangers and Celtic continue to dominate Scottish football – a scenario that has happened once again this season with both clubs miles ahead at the top of the table – they do bring in plenty of money to other clubs.
Moreover, the spectacle between the two sides garners a huge following around the world, with the Old Firm representing a great advert for Scottish football in general, which can only be a good thing for smaller clubs such as Livingston.
It is always a huge test for such clubs when they take on the likes of Rangers and Celtic, with lengthy celebrations enjoyed when they pull off a miracle and defeat either of the big two.
In other Rangers news, Ianis Hagi has been caught up in a “huge row” in Romania after his snub from the national team for their Euro 2024 qualifying matches last month.