Amid a hectic summer transfer window, former Rangers midfielder Derek Ferguson believes that the Gers should have cashed in on a particular defender.
Rangers transfer news
Those at Ibrox endured quite the summer overhaul as Philippe Clement made his mark on the side ahead of his first full season in charge in Scotland. The Gers welcomed a total of 10 fresh faces whilst bidding farewell to the likes of John Lundstram, Todd Cantwell and Borna Barisic throughout the window.
The 10th and final arrival that Rangers secured took place on deadline day, with Nedim Bajrami arriving from Sassuolo on a permanent basis. The attacking midfielder replaces Cantwell and should hand Clement’s side an instant boost going forward.
However, as Bajrami sealed the Gers’ incomings for the summer, pundit Ferguson believes that Rangers should have cashed in on Ridvan Yilmaz.
He told Ibrox News: “I think they’ve missed a trick with Yilmaz. They should have tried to sell him in the summer, to be honest. Had a good look at Yilmaz over the course of the last two or three years. He ain’t robust enough for this league. Doesn’t play a lot of 90 minutes.
“I didnae think when the manager came in he’d be his cup of tea, but he stuck with him and says he would improve him in the pre-season in terms of his fitness. But here we are again, he’s injured, he’s going to be out for a length of time. It would have been the better option to try to sell him on.
“I think there was a little bit of interest from one or two of the Turkish teams. We’re going to have him now until January – and on the wages, there’s a £4m-£5m player on good wages, [and] we’re not going to be able to shift him.”
Yilmaz adds depth behind Jefte
Whilst his latest injury comes at a frustrating time, Rangers couldn’t have predicted the future, and keeping hold of Yilmaz looked set to be a wise decision by those at Ibrox before his latest setback.
For the time being, at least, the left-back will add depth behind first-choice Jefte when he returns from injury. And that depth shouldn’t be looked past. It may well be the key to finally dethroning Celtic in a long season ahead.
The Gers will find out where they’re at compared to their Old Firm rivals this weekend when they square off against the Bhoys for the first time this term. With 10 fresh faces at their disposal, they could yet lay down an early marker.
When the latter stages of the campaign arrive, Clement will need as many options as he can get if he is to achieve the ultimate success in his first full season in charge at Rangers.
