Rangers have Scottish players on club radar even if rivalries can put 'spite in the water'

Potential moves by Rangers for Scottish players have appeared conspicuous by their absence in recent weeks.
Rangers manager Michael Beale believes there should be greater pride in the quality of player produced in the counry following a number of recent successful exports. (Photo by Ross MacDonald / SNS Group)Rangers manager Michael Beale believes there should be greater pride in the quality of player produced in the counry following a number of recent successful exports. (Photo by Ross MacDonald / SNS Group)
Rangers manager Michael Beale believes there should be greater pride in the quality of player produced in the counry following a number of recent successful exports. (Photo by Ross MacDonald / SNS Group)

As Michael Beale pursues a number of targets to enhance his squad across the final week-and-a-half of the January transfer window, he insists that is merely coincidental. The Ibrox manager stresses that “of course” he is interested in Scottish targets. More than that, he believes those within these borders do not champion the pedigree of native talent in line with its blossoming – citing the career trajectories of such as Ibrox product Nathan Patterson, now with Everton, and Aberdeen’s Lewis Ferguson, Hibs’ Josh Doig and Hearts’ Aaron Hickey, who all made successful moves to Italy.

Beale intriguingly floats the notion that the deep-rooted enmity between clubs can come into play when seeking to entice players from other cinch Premiership teams...while at the same time stressing “not at all” would any rivalries be the central stumbling block for such signings. More proasic footballing considerations that revolve around potential game-minutes can cause discussions to fizzle out.

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“You have to have Scottish players,” said the 42-year-old. “It’s Rangers, but also for the European quota, you have to have Scottish players in your squad. I think we should be proud, as people who work in and around the Scottish game, that some players have left these shores and done very well in the last couple of years. Maybe better than people thought they were going to do. So sometimes we are glass half-empty in terms of the way we see our football. Players are coming out of our academies and going to do well.

“We have lots of rivalries in Scotland, not just the big one here in Glasgow. So for players to move from some clubs to other clubs in Scotland … it’s more feisty than elsewhere, we all know that. There’s a little bit of spite in the water, if you like. But we’ve got good players in this country. Whether that’s young Nathan Patterson going down south, young Doig and Ferguson going to Italy or Hickey going across to Italy and coming back to the Premier League. I think we should champion these players.

“Not at all [do rivalries get in the way of recruitment]. The player has got to live it. It comes down to ‘is it the right fit?’ Anyone that has an opportunity to go and play for another club, to leave the club where they are a good player, they want to ask certain questions around playing time. If I was to meet another young player at a club in Scotland, the first question they want to ask is ‘am I going to play in your team?’ We have a particularly strong team. Sometimes that’s a reason why a player doesn’t sign.”

One type of signing Beale will not contemplate in the coming days is of the loan variety. However much, with a raft of injuries, that could help ease any immediate pressure on him. “I made a rod for my own back saying no loans because there are some quick fixes. But I don’t think that is right for the club long term,” the Rangers manager said. “That would be saving myself, if you like. I could go and get some quick fixes that make my record a bit stronger between now and the end of the season but don’t take Rangers any further forward and actually, in the short term, probably costs us quite a lot of money.”

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