Rangers: Lawrence Shankland ‘snobbery’ back to bite Philippe Clement as 146-match streak ends
Rangers ended a 146-match streak without a 0-0 draw as they were ineffective and blunt against Dundee at Dens Park.
Philippe Clement’s side never got out of second gear on Wednesday (17 April) night as they spurned a number of reasonable chances in front of goal as they missed the opportunity to close the gap to Celtic at the top of the table.
Both Kemar Roofe and Cyriel Dessers failed to have a major impact on proceedings as the Light Blues’ lack of a consistent number nine was exposed once again, but Clement and his recruitment team had the chance to put that right in January.
The Gers were repeatedly linked with a move for Hearts forward Lawrence Shankland and according to some journalists, a deal was there to be struck between the two sides if the Light Blues had acted upon their interest.
When the links with the Scottish international emerged, BBC Sport pundit Stephen McGinn was quick to suggest that there was a “snobbery” against signing players from within the Premiership.
Speaking on The Go Radio Football Show (7 December) he said: “There’s a bit of snobbery in this country. I get that when you go abroad, you can maybe get the superstars who are going to be here for four or five years.
“But if you look at their No 9s for the last few years. Kyogo was someone Ange Postecoglou knew inside out, Morelos was someone JJ knew inside out. We’ve had Klimala, Ajeti, this season Dessers, Danilo, big signings from abroad that haven’t hit it off.
“When you look at that over the years, then what’s the problem of going getting someone short term, guys who have worked for other clubs? Like Leigh Griffiths, Kris Boyd, Steven Naismith; they’ve all come from provincial clubs and done a job for Celtic and Rangers over the years.”
Will Rangers sign Hearts ace Lawrence Shankland in the summer transfer window?
In 32 Premiership start this term, Shankland has scored 21 goals whilst laying on four assits for his teammates, three of which have come in his last two matches as Hearts sit third in the table.
Even when the 28-year-old hasn’t been at his best, he is capable of finding the back of the net, something that cannot be said of either Dessers or Roofe. Not signing Shankland has come back to bite Clement.
Hopefully, the Belgian will learn from his “snobbery” ahead of the summer transfer window at Ibrox and won’t miss another opportunity to add some quality to his squad from within Scotland.
In other Rangers news, one BBC Sportsound pundit slammed Todd Cantwell for his “anonymous” performance at Dens Park
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