Rangers urged to sign 81-cap England veteran as Ibrox icon offers solution to problem position

Former Rangers hero calls on Ibrox club to target ex-Liverpool man

Ex-Rangers captain Barry Ferguson believes the Ibrox hierarchy must target experience in the January transfer window to avoid falling further behind Celtic and Aberdeen in the title race.

The heat has been turned up on head coach Philippe Clement after the Belgian saw his side fall nine points behind title rivals Celtic and Aberdeen, with goals from Nicky Devlin and Shayden Morris condemning the Glasgow giants to a damaging 2-1 defeat at Pittodrie on Wednesday night.

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Nedim Bajrami had levelled the scores for the visitors on 63 minutes, but an error at the back from James Tavernier allowed Aberdeen to retake the lead just 11 minutes later, leaving Ferguson to admit some of his former side’s recent performances have simply not been good enough.

Rangers fans "expect to see more" from Philippe Clement's team, says Barry Ferguson.Rangers fans "expect to see more" from Philippe Clement's team, says Barry Ferguson.
Rangers fans "expect to see more" from Philippe Clement's team, says Barry Ferguson. | SNS Group

“The fans are expecting to see more,” he said. “If you play at a club like Rangers; there's demands, there's expectations on top of you. You're always demanded to win games of football. If you draw, it's not good enough. If you suffer a defeat, it's an absolute disaster. So this group of players need to understand that when you play at Rangers, it's all about winning games of football."

The 46-year-old conceded that Rangers boss Clement had been forced into a summer rebuild, but admits the team simply aren’t gelling as they should have done three months into the campaign.

"There's been a big rebuild,” said Ferguson. “A lot of players left in the summer, some of them really experienced. The club had to cut the wage budget as well because it was too high. Rangers brought a lot of players in, and it takes a bit of time for them to settle. But now, it's three months into the season.

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“We need to start to see them click and run over the top of teams. Unfortunately, that's not happened. There's been some good performances, but also some below-par performances.”

Ferguson believes adding some big game experience to the squad should be the club’s main priority in the new year, and pinpointed one former English Premier League midfielder he views as the ideal signing to help turn Rangers’ fortunes around.

“We've got a few midfielders at the club just now,” said Ferguson in an interview with Gambling.com. “Connor Barron, [Nicolas] Raskin and [Mohamed] Diomande are young in terms of games that they've played throughout their career. I just think having somebody experienced in there who's been about, who's played a lot of games; could give those sorts of players a helping hand and bring their game on.

Jordan Henderson and Rangers Tom Lawrence in action during the pre-season friendly against Ajax. Cr: SNS Group.Jordan Henderson and Rangers Tom Lawrence in action during the pre-season friendly against Ajax. Cr: SNS Group.
Jordan Henderson and Rangers Tom Lawrence in action during the pre-season friendly against Ajax. Cr: SNS Group. | SNS Group

“The spine of the team is always so important. We’ve got Jack Butland in goal who has been excellent since he's signed. I'd probably say we need an experienced midfielder, somebody like Jordan Henderson. With the experience he's got, he would more than bring on the three players that I've mentioned. Obviously it's not worked out at Ajax since he left Saudi Arabia.

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“They're three good young players in my opinion, I just think they need a bit of a helping hand. Not just in training, but I'm talking about when you're on a pitch. I just think somebody with his experience would certainly bring those players on.”

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