DMAA

4 minutes ago, Rousseau said:

I don't think so. He's barely played in three years because of a mental health issue, which won't be made easier playing in the old-firm goldfish bowl.

 

He may do a turn for Dundee, but I'm not too fussed we've overlooked him.

Probably an unlikely scenario but I would have liked to have seen us sign him on a similar length of contract Dundee got him for (18 months) and loaned him out to a Scottish Premiership side like Dundee/Hamilton.

In any case, I wish him well and hope he does generate significant revenue for Dundee, Scottish football needs much more of that.

Hopefully a full game for Docherty this time, and it would seem to be the perfect opportunity to test out a Cummings-Morelos partnership, though I'd be surprised to see it.

I'd like to see the same team you've put but Goss in for Holt and Murphy for Windass. The thinking behind that being that Docherty would make up for the loss of Holt's energy and Goss's creativity and passing could be crucial to getting the ball to Cummings and Morelos in a tricky away game. Murphy over Windass because he offers far more defensively on the left wing and arguably does in terms of creativity too. Windass doesn't really perform on the left wing.

I had seen Celtic linked with Caulker after he was released in December and my first thought was that it would be a big risk because he'd demand a big wage.

His move to Dundee however proves that wasn't the case, which leaves me thinking we've missed out on a very good player. It seems likely Dundee will have another big payday coming up with this one. I know we already have plenty centre backs but none of them have the potential Caulker has.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-5369895/Dundee-boss-Neil-McCann-hails-capture-Steven-Caulker.html

On ‎08‎/‎02‎/‎2018 at 12:26, Barebear said:

I wouldn't say John is a nightmare but he's just no very good. I don't really see what he brings, he's not exactly a flying wingback with a lethal Cross, he doesn't make late runs into the advanced areas and I think I can count on one hand the amount of shots he has had. As for defending, well, he's no Stuart Munro, is he. 

 

Wallace is sorely missed. 

The only full game I've seen this season is Celtic but I thought John was very good against them. Having said that they made Youssouf Mulumbu look like Iniesta last weekend so maybe that wasn't the best game to judge him.

53 minutes ago, pete said:

 

Boyle will be a big miss to them as he is lightening quick.

Big miss. He's been a great signing for them, like McGinn they bought him very young and he's grown into a consistent performer. McGregor would be a big loss to them too.

I didn't say it would be easy or comfortable just that I'm confident we'd prevail. They won't be any more fired up for it than Aberdeen were a couple of weeks ago, who are a far better team.

I thought Hibs looked pretty good in the highlights from the other night. Barker and Boyle have the potential to get the byline and cause problems and Scott Allan adds creativity in the centre. But the bottom line is they haven't strengthened where they needed to, they create plenty chances but don't have a goalscorer. Kamberi scored the other day but his record is poor, and Murray & Stokes are away now.

Further to that, this is Hibs' 5th big away game on the bounce (Aberdeen-Hearts-Celtic-Hearts-Rangers), and they've failed in the previous 4. The Aberdeen game was a humping and they failed to score in the other 3 (2 losses and a draw).

So I'm confident we'll beat them. I'd like to see Docherty get a proper run out (half an hour at least) this time, he came to us match fit and we don't want to lose that. And the tempo may suit him more than Goss. And hopefully Cummings will come on with plenty time to do damage too, maybe for Windass.

Aberdeen are very good at prioritising quality over quantity. Their squad is very thin comparatively and it’s what’s allowed them to compete with us this season and last. Our transfer and wage money has been spread out much thinner than theirs, allowing them to have a very strong starting 11 for their budget. Wright and McKenna have both broken through at least partially as a result. 

It is very hard to conclude he doesn't have anti-Rangers sentiment when he was willing to believe the conspiracy theories peddled by Celtic bloggers over other journalists and Rangers themselves and put his reputation on the line without first doing all he could to ascertain the facts. Incredible.

Looking forward to the apologies flooding in now from said bloggers.

1 hour ago, Frankie said:

The problem we have compared to those other teams is that our fans demand and expect constant success.  As such, whilst you want to have as many young players as possible, their natural inconsistencies or proneness to injury or general inexperience, means it's difficult for a club like Rangers to base their side wholly on youth.  Yes, whether by luck or judgement, the very best young players will make it but the vast majority will not.

 

That's not to say they won't make eventually or that our decision-making is perfect in giving (or not giving) them a chance, just that other factors are at play and they don't usually align enough to improve our development record.

 

Ultimately though playing for Rangers remains a huge draw and young players shouldn't be afraid to take what may seem like a step back to make a step forward in the longer term.  It might not work out first time but continue to work hard then you might get the chance to come back.

My primary point is really on the size of the squad. I don't think that goal of constant success is furthered by having so many average players in the squad. And I think there's evidence that it would be furthered by having a thinner squad which would allow a young player to come through now and again. Both by allowing our young players to go to the next level like McCrorie has and also by saving wages which would allow higher wages to be offered to first team regulars. The quality over quantity argument.

So to give examples I mean;

• Having 1 senior goalie instead of 2, on the off chance Wes gets injured will Alnwick really be so much better than Kelly/McCrorie as to justify his wages? I'd guess not
• Having 3 senior centre backs instead of 4, with Aidan Wilson making the bench when one of them is injured
• Having 4 senior centre mids instead of 7 (Barjonas making the bench when we have 2 injuries)
• Having 5 attacking midfielders instead of 6, with Atakayi/ Middleton/Burt competing to make the bench in the case of an injury or two
• Having 2 senior strikers instead of 5 (they are competing for one place at the moment), with Rudden/Dallas making the bench when one of them is injured

I don't mean it needs to be exactly like that I'm just explaining the principle. The principle being when injuries hit, the best players from the development squad have the huge incentive of competing with each other for a place on the Rangers bench.

46 minutes ago, Frankie said:

A youth player attempting to get into the Rangers first team (and staying there) is a very different prospect from getting into the Hearts or Hamilton first XI to name but two other clubs.

 

Of course any Rangers manager would want to promote the best young players but only the very best are capable of making that step and it's worth noting that players develop at different stages as well.

True but my point is that Hearts have allowed the chance for the best players to break through,  whereas Rangers at the moment have not because the squad is huge.

McCrorie is an example of a player who only broke through this season by pure luck (2 senior injuries at centre back), but we now know deserved to be ahead of those senior players in the first place. You only find that out when the youth player has been given the chance to test himself at that level.

The other point is that by setting up like that you attract the best young players, because they will want to go where they have a chance of breaking through. Will the next James MacArthur chose Rangers over Hamilton/Hearts if given the choice? Very doubtful.

Yes. It's hardly as big a decision as whether to renew a contract for a Kenny Miller or a Niko Kranjcar who are on a big salary. His wage will be one of the smallest in the squad so there's not much to lose. At 21 he's a player who can and should appreciate in value too.

31 minutes ago, Blueger said:

Yes Harry, Jamie Brandon, Daniel Baur and Aaron Reid have all been at Rangers Academy at one stage or another and moved to Hearts and have all had some first team experience. Don't know why Murty, who has coached our u20s, doesn't seem to have faith in them. It's fair enough if he doesn't, it's his opinion and he is the manager, but he should just let the boys move on somewhere else where someone will give them a chance, these boys have given their all for years, they are talented, they do have what it takes to be professional footballers, if it isn't going to be at Rangers let it be somewhere else. If I could get my boy out I would, in fact we are feeling pretty desperate and if anyone has any advice as to how we can get my boy away please let me know.

It's good to see at least someone leading the way (Hearts), but Rangers should learn from them. It's a myth that to be a top team you need to have 20-25 senior players in your squad like we currently do. McCrorie only squeezed in this season because of injuries to Avles and Wilson. If everyone was fit he might have just run his contract down.

It's sad to hear the experience you've had, are Rangers not letting them out on loan?

I wouldn't blame Murty though. He inherited a bloated squad and has only added first team regulars who were needed. Ideally he'd have cleared out the dross but for all we know that was out of his hands. Appointing the U20s coach could be the start of a culture change at Rangers.

7 minutes ago, the gunslinger said:

A 7 million plus profit on a player in 6 months would be exceptional.

If he is staying we should get him on a new deal he only signed for 3 years i think.

3 minutes ago, stewarty said:

Agreed.  Its like what we mentioned about Jordan Jones and the way Killie rejected out bid so publicly and essentially stated they felt he was worth £1m?  If that is the case, are they reflecting his value in his wage packet?   The same logic would apply to how we are remunerating Morelos.   Keep him motivated, let him develop, give him a rest (i.e. when Cummings is fit enough to start) and lets see if he can't kick on and push that value up and over £10m.

It's a good point. Don't annoy him by publicly valuing him so high but privately paying him as a £1m player. The wage rise would pay for itself in performances, and adding a year or two to his deal will add to his value. 

And it should be a rebuke to us that the main team doing this right now is Hearts, who's shining star has been a 16 year old who scored against Celtic in the 4-0 win, who was taken from us a few years ago. And he's not the only U20 playing regularly for them who was taken from us.

33 minutes ago, Darthter said:

I'm glad that he's getting those chances to miss....it shows that he's getting into the right positions etc.  

I'm sure you'll find that most successful strikers miss the majority of their chances.  The more chances he gets, the more he will actually put them away.

There's truth in that. And the big thing post transfer window is that the team behind him is stronger, will have more possession and create more chances for him. If he gets his head right his goals ratio should improve post January transfer window.

34 minutes ago, Blueger said:

 

I'm not surprised, there needs to be a clear pathway to the first team. I don't see why everyone is so concerned about having senior backups for every position. I find it bizarre. How little trust do we have in our U20s that we wouldn't trust them to step in on an odd occasion? And the big thing for Rangers is we're throwing money away to do this.

20 hours ago, Blueger said:

Still had 18 months on his contract so we must have paid money for him, would imagine Murty knows the boy well and sees him in his long term plans for the first team.

Great to see Rangers spending money on prospects. As I said on the other thread, this is the age you can get the best value player. Especially with Scottish players who don't need persuaded to sign for Rangers. I'd like to see fringe players cleared out in the summer and more U20s on the bench next season. Lower wage bill and gives them a clear pathway to the first team. I think it's pretty discouraging for them at the moment with the likes of Hodson and Dodoo ahead of them. 

I think he's just pointing out that a striker 4 years older than Morelos with a pretty average scoring record in the championship has gone for £10m, £2m more than was offered for Morelos. 12 goals in 44 last season, 8 in 27 this season.

For once Sutton is right, Scottish clubs are letting players go too cheaply.

Daily Record saying Rangers are making enquiries about Jack Hendry. Again if true, it would suggest Rangers are at least looking at where the Morelos money could go. I haven't seen him play, and though he might be a great future player he probably wouldn't make much difference to the team this season starting ahead of either Alves, Bates, Martin or McRorie.

3 minutes ago, Rousseau said:

McBurnie is not a good replacement, as he is not a goal-scorer; he's a target-man, which may be a good foil for our crossers but he's not a great replacement for Morelos IMO. He's older than Morelos (I think?), but in many ways behind him.

 

I would suggest the majority have no idea what he's like but want him because of his 'staunch' credentials -- as someone else stated above, I think? 

 

He's a promising players, and I'd love to have him on our books, but he's not a replacement for Morelos. 

Exact same age, but definitely not a replacement. Morelos is an all rounder, McBurnie isn't so would have to get a lot of goals in the air to accommodate and a lot of assists for the likes of Cummings and Murphy.

9 minutes ago, Frankie said:

A risk to swap but money talks - might have to be a permanent deal as not sure we can have any more loan players.

The article mentioned a possible buying option in the summer. Could we get Dalcio out to accommodate? Why on earth is he still here anyway/

In for McBurnie. Only way he comes in is if Morelos goes, so if true it suggests Rangers are seriously considering selling.

If he's as good in the air as they say, he would put away a lot more of Candeias and Tavernier's crosses.

https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/sport/football/2167733/rangers-oliver-mcburnnie-swansea/

It’s the way to go. It’s at that age you can get the best value. I’d advocate far more money being spent on 16-19 year olds. The youth team should be full of internationals and future title winners, not random kids who’d just make the bench at Stenhousemuir. 

38 minutes ago, Uilleam said:

 

So is Kal Naismith another player we underestimated, like Fleck? If he’s out of contract in the summer he’s probably a better player to have on the bench than the likes of Kranjcar and Herrera.