Derek McInnes gets rare Rangers good news as James Penrice transfer announced

Derek McInnes will finally get to work with James Penrice at Rangers.

The Gers have signed the AEK Athens left-back on a season-long loan with an option to buy next summer.

With Tuur Rommens picking up an injury that will keep him out for more than a month, the Light Blues were in desperate of cover.

Penrice will bring his experience and nous to Ibrox, having already played for Hearts in the Scottish Premiership.

McInnes has been forced to make tactical tweaks at the Glaswegian outfit due to a lack of personnel, and the Scottish defender's arrival brings much-needed depth to the squad.

It will be interesting to see how the 27-year-old fares in Govan, as the 55-year-old head coach will certainly throw him into the fire immediately.

How James Penrice transfer affects Derek McInnes' Rangers tactics

Rangers' move for Penrice seems to have been a long time in the making, with the left-back on their radar in January as well.

Last summer, McInnes couldn't fully work with the defender at Hearts after he moved to Greece.

The left-back's arrival will surely mean that the Scottish manager can stick to his preferred 4-4-2 formation in the upcoming matches rather than rely on a system with three centre-backs.

While the first half against Jagiellonia Bialystok at Ibrox showed promise when McInnes played with a back three, the former Hearts boss changed the formation at the break to play four defenders, albeit didn't work.

Penrice's move to the Glaswegian outfit will likely ensure that the Scottish manager can work on his preferred style of play in G51 without chopping and changing after failing to win any of his first four games in charge.

Speaking on Clyde 1 Superscoreboard on 15 August, Gordon Dalziel said, "I think it's good news for McInnes and Rangers because they certainly needed cover in that area. You saw the other night, Derek likes to play a back four but was forced to go into a back three.

"He needed cover in there because if he wants to play with a back four, it gives him a natural left-back. And everybody says he knows the Scottish game inside out. He's a very good player. A loan for a season I think is a good bit of business."

Three other transfers Derek McInnes needs after James Penrice agreement

Andrew Cavenagh promised more signings at Rangers during the recent shareholders meeting.

Penrice is the tenth signing at Ibrox this summer, but there could potentially be plenty more in the final weeks of the transfer window.

McInnes should demand a new centre-back, as the defence still clearly lacks depth.

With the deal for Couhaib Driouech collapsing, the Scottish manager will still be expecting a new winger to arrive at the Glaswegian outfit.

Youssef Chermiti's long-term injury also leaves the Govan side with a dilemma to either replace him or count on Ryan Naderi and Bojan Miovski to support Lawrence Shankland.

Based on what McInnes has publicly said about the importance of the Portuguese striker in his plans, he may want a replacement signing.