Rangers transfer news as Alex Lowry Eredivisie loan theory ticks all the boxes
A loan theory for sending Rangers gem Alex Lowry to the Netherlands to play and prosper was outlined by Jonny McFarlane on the Rangers Review [23 June] and it is one that ticks all the boxes.
He was responding to a comment calling for a ruthless approach to be taken to academy prospects who aren’t making the grade but the delicate balancing act of development, loans and player welfare was discussed by the journalist.
The prodigious talent Lowry had a disappointing season disrupted by injury, as well as a significant personal matter, but he really needs to make progress in the new campaign and that could well be best achieved by going out on loan.
Far too often, loans for young Rangers stars don’t achieve anything, so should that be the path for Lowry? McFarlane set out the pitfalls as well as the promise that could be fulfilled.
“What Rangers need is for a young player to go out on loan and explode. You need to find the right loan”, he said.
“Take Alex Lowry for example. If you were to put him into, say, St Johnstone, a team that isn’t ball-dominant, that’s not the right move.
“Alex Lowry probably needs to go to a top-six or seven Dutch side. He’s not going to go to Feyenoord, PSV or Ajax but to one of the teams below them where for the most part they are ball-dominant, where he is going to get as many games as he can, in a league and environment where he can bloom and blossom, but finding those loans isn’t easy.”
If we talking about Utecht or Heerenveen, that would be an attractive proposition. Absolutely. The same for say, a club just below the European places in Portugal.
However, it’s one thing to pick out a name but to make it happen is very different, as mentioned.
Rangers boss Michael Beale has a lot of problems to conquer in the months ahead and unlocking Lowry’s potential is one of them, as much as it isn’t quite a top priority. A lot of the responsibility falls to the player to put himself in a position that he can’t be ignored.
He isn’t likely to play 25 or 30 games for the first team so a suitable loan spell will be considered. If the right club and situation can be arranged, it could provide the platform for the 20-year-old to truly make his breakthrough at first team level.
In other Rangers news, Michael Beale is in personal talks to seal new defender transfer – report.