George Overhill

Thu 7 December 2023 18:40, UK

Rangers will be “desperate” to move players out in January because it is set to be the only way they’ll have anything to spend, according to Tom English.

Speaking on the Scottish Football Podcast on 6 December the BBC Sport journalist said he didn’t expect much activity in the winter window “at all”, in the wake of some “very interesting” criticism of the waste at Ibrox from chairman John Bennett at this week’s AGM.

English felt the likes of Michael Beale and Ross Wilson were targeted by the Ibrox chief in a “veiled” manner and suggested there are still a lot of “issues” at the club coming into the New Year.

English said (15m 10s): “There’s still a lot of issues there. Their AGM, I thought, was very interesting. John Bennett the chairman laying it out in no uncertain terms about the financial kind of waste that’s been at the club.

“If you look through the content of what he says there’s a lot of interesting detail there, a lot of criticism, veiled, in part, criticism of previous regimes under Beale and Ross Wilson.

“So I don’t think there’s going to much spend at all in January. I don’t think they have it to spend, unless they move players out. I think they’ll be desperate to move players out.”

Scraps

English’s claim is what plenty of fans will have feared in light of the latest accounts and the substantial spending since then, on Beale’s failed overhaul in the summer and his subsequent removal.

But at the same time Bennett also suggested at the AGM that Philippe Clement will be backed in January despite this context [Rangers Review, 5 December] so supporters will certainly hope he is as good as his word.

Few would dispute the idea that various in the squad need to be shifted on current evidence, but the same was routinely suggested last season and somehow the outlook has probably got worse since then.

The chances of selling any of the underperforming summer signings seem minimal, while it would leave the cupboard looking incredibly bare if any of the wanted assets went such as Jack Butland or Ross McCausland.

Robby McCrorie has been tipped to fetch good money and could be a departure that wouldn’t be as difficult to stomach, as long as Butland isn’t going anywhere.

But goalkeeper currently looks like the only area that the summer moves definitely addressed, with questions marks at striker, left-back, centre-back and central midfield at minimum.

It seems pretty unlikely that Clement will get an extensive haul midseason even if the money is available because the right targets are probably not gettable, but he surely needs a spark or two.

The turnover of managers, players, and members of the hierarchy in Govan since the 55th title win has comprehensively wasted the advantage that had been built in Scotland, and while Beale and Wilson are two of the names that stick out among that there is plenty of blame to go around.

Clement has shown a lot of positive signs but at the same time the landscape at Ibrox feels almost identical to 12 months ago, which is a damning indictment in light of the fact so many characters are different and so much money has been spent since then.

In other Rangers news, Clement is thought to certainly have a substantial list of players he has already decided won’t make it at Ibrox.