Blackburn warned off signing Rangers ace Lawrence amid Ewood Park development
Tom Lawrence looks set to exit Rangers in the summer with Blackburn a possible destination.
The 31-year-old is out of contract at Ibrox at the end of the season and there is no indication that a new deal is on the cards.
That would leave the former Derby midfielder free to leave Govan and several Championship clubs are interested in the Rangers star’s services, including Rovers.
Blackburn warned off Lawrence move as Rangers exit looms
Lawrence proved his abilities for Rangers in the 4-3 win over Dundee (29 March) with a stunning strike to level the contest after coming off the bench.
However, Don Goodman has warned Blackburn about making a move for the Gers ace, due to the relationship between supporters and the ownership already being very tense at Ewood Park.
Speaking to Football League World (4 April), he said: “A move to Blackburn Rovers? I would say it is more of an appropriate move than to Burnley, going to Blackburn.
“However, I am just looking at the way that the club is at the moment. There seems to be zero trust by the fans to the owners, to the Director of Football, to the Chief Executive, to the people that recruit the players.
“Their transfer business has been really underwhelming, and I suspect that if Tom Lawrence was signed at Blackburn Rovers, I am not sure that it would be a signing that would really excite the fans.”
Rangers cannot repeat past errors as 49ers take over
With the 49ers Enterprises group set to takeover at Ibrox, the Gers must avoid making the same mistakes as the previous regime, allowing players to leave for free rather than securing a fee.
The new owners must implement a new strategy, identifying players that could leave upon the expiry of their contract and tie them down to a new deal before it gets to the point where they can leave with no benefit to the Bears.
| Stats (Scottish Premiership) | Lawrence |
| Matches | 15 |
| Started | 8 |
| Goals | 4 |
| Assists | 2 |
| Pass accuracy | 79.4% |
That way they would ensure that they make some money off of players that would look to run down their deals, even if it is just modest sums like £2-3million.
Lawrence is just the latest player to run his contract down and depart for nothing and considering the interest in his services, a decent fee could have been demanded if he was still a Gers player.
That would allow the Auchenhowie outfit to reinvest in the playing squad and ensure that the Gers remain competitive in the Scottish Premiership and begin to close the gap to arch-rivals Celtic.
The 49ers network and financial backing should allow the Light Blues to target better quality in the upcoming transfer window, but they must erase the failures of the past, otherwise they will continue to struggle domestically.