John Bennett has Ross Wilson replacement right under his nose at Rangers as Nottingham Forest make hire
It’s been a hectic 24 hours at Rangers with Ross Wilson’s Ibrox departure confirmed late on Wednesday evening (12 April).
The former Southampton chief was announced as Nottingham Forest’s new chief football officer to bring his three-and-a-half-year stay at Rangers to an end.
It feels like an amicable end for Wilson. There were calls from the fan base for change, and the opportunity at the Premier League club was an easy way out.
However, the absence of a sporting director has come at a bad time for the Light Blues. We are heading into one of the most crucial transfer windows in the club’s recent history and Michael Beale needs all the help he can get when it comes to reshaping his ageing squad.
There will be plenty of departures and the former QPR boss will need assistance if he wants to build a team which is capable of competing with Celtic.
A fast appointment would seem the best route to go down. There’s only one man who should be considered for this role and he’s right under John Bennett’s nose.
John Park is currently the Gers’ chief scout and has previously worked wonders at Hibernian and Celtic. If we can look past Park working with the Bhoys, then the players he identified make for exciting reading.
Moussa Dembele, Victor Wanyama and Virgil van Dijk were all scouted by Park during his stint at Parkhead. This should provide plenty of optimism.
Wilson certainly had some success stories, with Calvin Bassey and Joe Aribo, however, his decision-making when it comes to out-of-contract players has been questionable.
With a quick appointment required before the end of the season, this seems like a no-brainer. Give Park the role, he will, without a doubt, do a better job than his predecessor.
In other Rangers news, Kris Boyd has reacted to the news that Wilson is close to leaving.