Every department of Rangers starting XI will need work in the summer and Philippe Clement will need all the help that Nils Koppen can provide to get the players he needs.
The board will provide a budget, however, selling players who aren’t contributing will help, as will moving on the higher earners who are out of contract.
Rumours of potential signings have been quiet, but Rangers are already seeing some members of Philippe Clement’s squad linked with moves away.
- READ MORE: All Philippe Clement signings since 2024
Rangers face competition for John Lundstram’s signature
Borna Barisic was reported to have agreed a deal with Trabzonspor some time ago and won’t be hard to replace.
Sam Lammers is setting the Eredivisie alight and might even earn Rangers more than we paid for him with Feyenoord the latest team said to be interested – incredible given his form in the first half of the season.
Sports Digitale, Turkey’s biggest sports news outlet are now claiming that John Lundstram isn’t just in talks with Trabzonspor, but that a deal has been agreed:
“Trabzonspor added John Lundstram and Borna Barisic from Rangers to its squad.”
Both out of contract players are reported to have signed two-year deals with the option of a third.
Speaking as part of the buildup to the weekend’s Scottish Premiership clash with St Mirren, Philippe Clement provided an update on 30-year old Lundstram’s contract situation and whether or not he wanted him to stay:
“There have been offers from the club, there is no agreement yet. That is the only thing I can say for the moment.
“I hope that. I know he loves the club, I know he loves to be here. It depends what you can offer as a club and what other clubs are offering in this situation.
“That is why I don’t like that important players are at the end of contract and we talked about that already a few times.
“I don’t think it is a good thing for a club. It is something that will never happen again in the period that I am here, for sure.”
No player is bigger than Rangers
Rangers shouldn’t be offering players over 30 anything more than one-year deals except in very exceptional circumstances – Ally McCoist, Richard Gough or Jack Butland type circumstances.
If a player agrees to a two or three year extension when they are 28, 29, then it isn’t an issue, but that’s where Clement is right.
What won’t help Lundstram’s cause will be if he has agreed a deal in principle with Trabzonspor so that he can push his wage up with Rangers at the same time.
Rangers should always look to have a core of experienced players and a leadership group, that doesn’t mean that the club should bend over to accommodate them.
No player is bigger than the club, Paul Gascoigne found that out, so did Terry Butcher, Graham Roberts and Andy Goram in their respective careers at Rangers.
John Lundstram, with 11 goals in his time at Ibrox, certainly isn’t bigger than Rangers nor, despite his availability, should he be one of the top earners.
Every player can be replaced, if Lundstram doesn’t want to play for Rangers on the club’s terms, he can follow the many others who left, and then quickly regret it.
