Kevin Thelwell in firing line as Tam McManus names ‘phenomenal’ player Rangers could’ve had
Rangers must be “absolutely kicking themselves” after pulling out of the race to sign Josh Mulligan, according to Tam McManus.
Mulligan was rumoured to have undergone a medical with Rangers in the summer transfer window as the Gers looked closer to home for new talent.
However, Mulligan joined Hibernian instead in June upon the expiry of his Dundee United contract.
Derek Ferguson was annoyed by Rangers missing out on Mulligan at the time, exclusively telling Ibrox News it was exactly the type of deal the 49ers should have been targeting.
And player-turned-pundit McManus also believes it is a transfer Rangers will be annoyed at missing out on.
Josh Mulligan has potential to become ‘phenomenal’
Mulligan was somewhat surprisingly left out of Scotland’s latest squad for this month’s crucial World Cup qualifiers against Greece and Denmark.
He has played 12 matches for Hibs this season, starting all but one of those, and has one goal and two assists to his name.
As per Sofascore, Mulligan is also averaging over two tackles per game and registering 0.67 interceptions per game.
And McManus, writing for the Daily Record, believes Kevin Thelwell and other Rangers figures will be left wondering what could have been.
“Going overboard is something I’d always guard against… but I’m serious. Mulligan has the makings of a phenomenal player,” McManus said.
“Mulligan may be just 22 but he plays like an experienced 29-year-old and might be the shrewdest bit of business since a 20-year-old McGinn made the move from Paisley.
“Rangers must be absolutely kicking themselves they pulled out of signing him under sporting director Kevin Thelwell, former boss Russell Martin and the new regime at Ibrox.”
Rangers’ summer transfer business leaves a lot to be desired
Rangers had a scattergun approach to signings in the summer, seemingly leering from one type of target to another.
Fourteen players were signed either permanently or on loan, and it is a struggle to pick out many of them as success stories so far.
The headline purchase was £8million striker Youssef Chermiti from Everton, from whom Thelwell left to join Rangers.
| Player | Appearances | Goals | Assists | Minutes played |
| Chermiti | 13 | 1 | 1 | 634 |
| Miovski | 14 | 2 | 0 | 730 |
Chermiti has been nothing short of terrible for Rangers so far and it will take a look of convincing that he is going to be remotely close to the figure the Gers paid for him one day.
The jury is still out on others, including fellow forward Bojan Miovski, but ultimately it was a wasted summer for the 49ers and one they must rectify in January.
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