If the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results, Rangers lost it a long time ago.
The Gers have been repeating the same process for the last few years and expecting something magical to happen in the meanwhile.
From extensive squad ‘rebuilds’ to manager sackings and playing the same old faces, Rangers fans are well used to footballing deja vu within the walls of Ibrox.
But this year, this year we’re promised it’s going to be different.
Only despite releasing Kemar Roofe, Rangers appear to have a readymade and suitably expensive replacement to take his place in the club’s under fire squad.
Injury hit striker follows in Kemar Roofe’s footsteps
For all of Rangers’ shortcomings in recent seasons, injuries have had a disastrous role to play.
For the best part of 30 months, Rangers have been unable to navigate a spate of depressing injury issues which have prevented a stretched squad from ever achieving its potential.
Since Philippe Clement came in through the door the Belgian has been pretty clear about the need for change in the medical department.
And so the Belgian has set about trying to lift the Ibrox injury curse, not so much with Holy water and crosses but more with an improved physiotherapy department.
But despite that insistence that things are going to be different as Clement tries to hit his own 90% availability target, at the top end of the pitch it’s same old, same old.
Rangers fans had only just begun to get over the trauma of Kemar Roofe’s injury-plagued time in Glasgow before Brazilian striker Danilo hobbled into his place.
Injury-plagued Danilo has it all to prove at Rangers
Kemar Roofe is still without a club following his release from Rangers at the end of a four-year Ibrox contract.
Rangers paid £4.5m to sign Roofe from Anderlecht in 2020 and the striker’s arrival was initially inspired, with the forward shooting the Gers to 55 in his first season.
But after that the lingering injury issues began to take hold and Roofe was limited to just over 60 games in three years.
There were some big moments of course, but there was literally no argument for keeping Kemar Roofe around given his expensive wages and the importance of his role in the squad.
But as Roofe moves on, another expensive Rangers striker signing shows no signs of working his way back from injury and into the Ibrox squad.
Brazilian striker Danilo was last summer’s marquee arrival, Rangers paying Feyenoord £6m to sign the ex-Ajax hitman under the management of Michael Beale.
But a facial injury early on in Danilo’s Gers career was followed by a knee injury which has devastated the forward’s move to Glasgow.
Having worked his way back up to fitness this summer, there has been yet more disappointment with Danilo spotted hobbling on crutches at the start of the international break.
There are plenty of nerves around the situation with under-fire Rangers hitman Cyriel Dessers left to lead the line in Danilo’s absence.
Throw in the hitman being left out of Rangers’ Europa League squad and there are murmurs Danilo faces more than a month on the sidelines.
Whilst a month is a month anywhere else, inside Ibrox it’s often the length of a contract.
We’ve seen this movie plenty of times before and many fans have already fast-forwarded to the ending with the Brazilian.
Already there’s a feeling that if we get anything out of the striker at all this season, it’s probably a bonus.
Danilo can have all the ability in the world but when he doesn’t have any availability, he’s just another name to add to the ever-expanding list of questionable transfer dealings at Ibrox.
