BBC Scotland pundit urged Ibrox board to complete Steven Davis Rangers return
Kenny Miller has revealed that he urged the Rangers board to bring Steven Davis back to Ibrox, admitting he felt the midfielder would take the Gers back to the top.
The Northern Irish international announced his retirement from football on Thursday, ending a career that saw him feature 132 times for his national side and well over 300 times for the Light Blues across several spells in Glasgow.
However, his most recent spell seems to have come courtesy of BBC Scotland’s Miller, with the former Rangers star admitting that he called Davis himself to try and encourage him to make a return to Glasgow under Steven Gerrard.
Writing for the Daily Record (28 January) he said: “Standards had slipped at Rangers when I left the club in 2018. There weren’t enough winners. Guys who knew what it would take to get Rangers back on top.
“So when I was asked what was required I told the board they had to try to sign certain players. And Steven Gerrard was one of them. I even tried to do it myself. I called Davo and asked if he’d come back. But he was playing every week in the Premier League for Southampton.
“Of course, he reiterated his love for Rangers and what the club meant to him – but the time wasn’t right. Thankfully for everyone at Ibrox, Steven Gerrard made it happen 18 months later. And it’s no surprise that, since then, standards have been raised.
“Rangers are now winning trophies, competing for titles and are a force again in Europe. And Davis has played a huge part in that.”
Big impact
A lot has been made about Davis’ impact at Rangers and it isn’t wrong to suggest that the 39-year-old will go down as a modern-day legend at Ibrox given the immense effect he’s had on the team.
Even when the midfielder was struck down by injury, he managed to step up to help his club once again as he jumped into the manager’s seat on a temporary basis when Michael Beale was sacked at the beginning of the season.
While it is a shame that his career as a Rangers player was brought to such a sudden end through injury, Davis at least managed to bow out on a high in the dugout and has managed to leave Ibrox on his own terms.
Hopefully, he’ll have an excellent career in whatever he does next, whether that be coaching or punditry. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him make another return to Rangers in some capacity, especially if Miller is on the phone again.
In other Rangers transfer news, a new stumbling block has emerged in Ridvan Yilmaz’s January exit from Ibrox
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