Last week, Glenn Middleton secured a loan switch to fellow Scottish Premiership club, Hibernian.
It didn’t go down well with a considerable number of Gers fans, but the winger insisted the move was right for him and that he couldn’t wait to get going.
The whole rationale behind the switch was a search for first-team football.
After the arrivals of Jordan Jones, Jake Hastie, Sheyi Ojo and Brandon Barker in wide areas, had he stayed at Ibrox, Middleton would likely have been confined to Reserves and Development fixtures.
It’ll be a different story at Easter Road, with the Edinburgh outfit in need of some added flair in attacking areas.
Rangers loanee Glenn Middleton makes positive start
In fact, Middleton was thrown straight in from the start on Saturday, making his Hibs debut in the League Cup against Championship side, Greenock Morton.
It didn’t take him long to get in on the action, either. After controlling the ball on the left side in the 20th minute, the teenage winger drove towards the edge of the area before pulling back a pass into the path of Scott Allan. The midfielder dispatched a tidy finish and put the hosts 1-0 up.
That was to be Middleton’s final tangible contribution, but he showed good energy and nice touches throughout his involvement in the match. Understandably, manager Paul Heckingbottom deemed him not quite fit enough to complete the 90 minutes, and he was replaced by Fraser Murray with ten minutes left on the clock.
A late Steven Whittaker own goal sent the game to extra-time, from which Hibs eventually emerged 5-3 winners.
An encouraging start, then, for Middleton with his adopted side.
The aim is to get plenty of playing time and to contribute regularly across the season. Against Morton, he certainly gave the impression there are big things to come.
