Josh Windass: Steven Gerrard wanted me to stay at Rangers

Former Rangers star Josh Windass has revealed that manager Steven Gerrard wanted him to stay at Ibrox, and that one of the main reasons he left was the derisory offer the board accepted for his services.

The attacking midfielder played in every one of Gerrard’s first five games after the Liverpool legend agreed to become the club’s manager in the summer.

Despite this, it was little surprise when Windass left the club shortly after the 1-1 draw with Aberdeen at the start of the league season. The player had previously been linked with a move back down to England and was said to have a release clause in his contract.

Josh Windass, right, played for Rangers for two seasons. Picture: John Devlin

However, when Rangers accepted the bid from Wigan Athletic, thought to be £2.5million, Windass was shocked to discover the fee, believing the club should have valued him much higher after a season where he bagged 18 goals in 41 appearances.

Speaking to Simon Ferry on Open Goal, he said: “I was playing wide, and I was thinking to myself if I’m going to give my full performance for him [Gerrard] I can’t do it from out wide. I told him I’m not a wide player, I can play there if he needs me to, but that’s not going to get the best out of me.

“We got to deadline day [in England] I got a text saying Wigan had a bid accepted for £2.5 million. I thought £2.5 million? What the hell?

“I thought, if I’m going to play on the wing, and they want to accept £2.5 million for a player with my numbers, well then I’ll see you in a bit.

“He [Gerrard] basically said, ‘you’ve got a decision to make. The board have accepted this offer, I don’t want you to go but obviously it’s down to you’.

“I don’t think he was that happy. [When I told him] he just stood up and said ‘no hard feelings’ and walked off.”