Chris Sutton believes there are still major ‘questions’ about Mick Beale’s squad while accusing the Rangers fans of over-egging the ability of Todd Cantwell and Nicolas Raskin.
If the Celtic legend has ‘questions’, then Rangers insipid 1-0 opening day defeat at Kilmarnock on Saturday evening provided very few answers.
Brad Lyons slammed the only goal of the game past Jack Butland just after the hour mark, with fellow debutants Sam Lammers, Abdallah Sima and Cyriel Dessers struggling to influence proceedings at the other end of the pitch.
And while Rangers appear to have assembled a squad brimming with both quality and quantity, football is not played on paper; that reality-checking Rugby Park no-show a harsh reminder of how far Beale’s side still have to come.
Rangers suffer Kilmarnock shock
“There is no doubt there are still a lot more questions around this Rangers squad Michael Beale has assembled over the summer,” Sutton tells the Daily Record; his old employers already three points clear after a David Turnbull-inspired 4-2 victory over Ross County.
“The pressure is on after being backed heavily in the transfer market. It was always going to take time though. When you bring in so many new players, there is going to be a period of adjustment. A settling down spell where things don’t happen overnight.
“Danilo has come in, and you would think he will be the main focal point given the outlay. Jose Cifuentes is likely to arrive and there will be plenty of midfield options. Others such as Sam Lammers and Cyriel Dessers have got a level of pedigree. But (they) still have a lot to prove.”
Sutton, meanwhile, believes that Cantwell and Raskin have proven nothing yet, despite impressing following their January arrivals from Norwich City and Standard Liege respectively.
Yes, both players were outstanding in May’s 3-0 thrashing of Celtic. But can they perform with the requisite consistency, week-in, week-out? Can they unlock deep-lying defences when Rangers are away from home at teams of Kilmarnock’s ilk?
Rangers must bounce back
“As far as I was concerned, fans went a bit overboard with Todd Cantwell and Nico Raskin last season given they ended up winning nothing,” Sutton argues. “They still need to produce over a long period.
“You can chuck Tom Lawrence and Abdallah Sima into the mix.”
Sutton also feels improvements will need to be made defensively too, even if Celtic hardly looked rock-solid themselves in that six-goal Ross County thriller.
“Defensively there are concerns. Connor Goldson is huge for Rangers and they’ll need him back sharpish. John Souttar is decent but it remains to be seen if he can do it over a whole season. And Ben Davies doesn’t look like his face fits.
“The left-back role is an area that is worrying supporters and it’s understandable. Borna Barisic is unconvincing and Ridvan Yilmaz is still young and developing.”
