As Rangers prepare for life without Scott Arfield for the next four or five weeks, it’s a sizeable blow for the Ibrox club.
The tenacious midfielder is an influential member of Steven Gerrard’s side and has battled back from the fringes to emerge as a key part of the club’s success so far this season.
But with plenty on the line in the first half of 2021, should Rangers step up their reported interest in a Premier League midfielder they reportedly have one eye on?
Like Scott Arfield, John Lundstram is a box-to-box midfielder with plenty of tenacity and bite but importantly similarly to the former Canadian international, Lundstram offers goals.
It’s these added numbers which Rangers will likely most miss from the middle of the pitch as Arfield’s game-defining late runs are taken out of the side.
Joe Aribo is the obvious choice to replace the midfielder, the Nigerian international suffering an injury himself in the early part of the campaign and now looking to cement a starting berth.
Ianis Hagi too is another forward-thinking option who could drop make to fill the void left by Arfield’s absence.
The likes of Bongani Zungu are still to come into the team but it’s generally accepted that the South African won’t offer the same thing as Arfield, whilst Davis and Kamara also fulfil different roles.
The club’s other midfielder Ryan Jack remains on the sidelines but has returned to training even if Steven Gerrard admitted he will be slow reintroducing the Scotland international to the side.
None of the players at the club offer the same aggression combined with goal threat that Arfield does and if the Gers are facing up to a period without Scotty in the side, perhaps they should speed up any interest in Lundstram.
Rangers are reportedly eyeing a pre-contract move for the Sheffield United midfielder but it’s been reported the Blades could be open to doing a deal this month [Yorkshire Live].
Whilst there’s plenty of talk of Rangers making moves in the January transfer window, Ibrox boss Steven Gerrard was quick to shut any links down as he provided a transfer update.
