Official Rangers partner reacts to five confirmed Ibrox exits, singles out Scott Arfield over Ryan Kent and Alfredo Morelos
Heart & Hand Podcast has reacted to the official Rangers announcement that five first-team players will exit Ibrox when their contracts expire, while singling out Scott Arfield for praise.
The Canadian international is joined by Ryan Kent, Alfredo Morelos, Allan McGregor and Filip Helander as a substantial chunk of recent club history moves on.
Michael Beale has already kicked off a major summer rebuild as he looks to reel in Celtic, and the old guard will depart to make room for a new era.
Taking to Twitter immediately after the announcement on Tuesday (23 May) Heart & Hand posted: “As expected. It’s definitely time for change.”
A follow-up message was then posted with a photo of Arfield saying: “There will be a lot of focus on Kent and Morelos but I’d just like to wish all the best to this chap. Some important goals and great memories.”
End of an era
Arfield could perhaps have been a useful option to keep around given his reliability and regular availability, but at 34 and with a couple of good years left at least he may not have wanted to remain a bench option for the latter period of a his career.
McGregor at 41 is likely to retire but has established his place in Rangers history with over 500 appearances, while the high-profile duo Morelos and Kent leaving for nothing will undoubtedly sting.
Selling either even a year ago would have brought in a significant amount in fees that would be very useful for the current rebuild, but thigh surgery for the Colombian knocked that out and it appeared at the time that the Englishman would likely extend his deal.
They will at least leave a significant gap on the wage bill that Beale can work with as he plots the course for the club going forward.
Helander is perhaps most unfortunate given he hasn’t been seen in a Rangers jersey all season due to injury and slips out of the club as somewhat of a forgotten man, despite being arguably the strongest centre-back at Ibrox when fit.
It is of course a painful process to move on from players who have played a big role, especially in winning trophies, but after a season where that hasn’t happened at all it is a necessary move.
In other Rangers news, one player has signed a contract extension after featuring in the win over Hibs at the weekend.