One year on from his brave move from Celtic, Aidan McAdams has been in the news.
The young Scottish star has been speaking about his future at Rangers and what he hopes to achieve. It says a lot about the youngster that he has such high ambitions after his move across the city a year ago.
For those who weren’t aware at the time, 19-year-old McAdams came through the ranks across the city. Yet, after not receiving the opportunities he believed he deserved, he signed up with the Ibrox club after a chat with Craig Mulholland.
An exceptional year in blue has seen his game increase tenfold. Making over 30 appearances for the under-20s, the former Parkhead kid is finally getting the step up he deserves.
Competing against the likes of Spartak Moscow, Hamburg, and Bayern Munich since arriving has opened his eyes to new experiences. Yet, if he wants to seriously impress Steven Gerrard, he should look at the man who left in the summer as inspiration – Livingston’s Liam Kelly.
Kelly made the brave move to leave Ibrox last season after not getting any opportunities in the first team. Now, it looks like Rangers could’ve kept him on as third choice given his performances this season. He’s into double figures for clean sheets, and has shut out both Rangers and Celtic this season.
All eyes are on him, and his bravery is seriously paying off. Kelly is now a solidified Premiership goalkeeper, and a potential future Rangers signing in the making.
McAdams is in the same boat as Kelly once was. Kelly is three years McAdams’ senior, and he’s shown the way to success. Whilst the current Rangers goalkeeper shouldn’t need to leave the club permanently, it shows how valuable a loan move in the top league could potentially be.
For now, it’s highly likely that he stays at the Hummel Training Centre to hone his craft. Graeme Murty continues to play him on a weekly basis for the Rangers side that’s top of the Reserve League. When the time comes, however, he needs to glance over at Kelly and take inspiration of what can happen when you make the brave step into senior football.
Allan McGregor has only just returned in the summer, with Wes Foderingham now his back-up. Jak Alnwick is also ahead of McAdams in the pecking order.
The former Celtic kid is such a huge talent, and will get his chance. Until then, however, he needs to find himself some senior football to really kick-start his development.
