Rangers days of signing big name players are long gone, without the pulling power of Steven Gerrard, even veterans like Jermain Defoe are probably out of the question.
There was a time when the Ibrox outfit could compete with European superpowers and even made an audacious bid for many people’s greatest of all time – Ronaldo, the original one.
One of the last genuine superstars to arrive was Paul Gascoigne who went on to blaze a trail in Scottish football in his two and a half years in Glasgow as Walter Smith’s masterstroke saw Rangers ease to 9-in-a-row.
Paul Gascoigne on who told Walter Smith to sign him for Rangers
Gazza, and Rangers, ran out of steam, however, the lure of the club and manager was one that the England playmaker couldn’t turn down, as told to Techopedia.com:
“So I took a drop, a massive drop in wages and said I want to sign for the Rangers.
“I remember years ago, I was with my ex-wife in Tampa, and (Walter) Smith was there, and I went, ‘see that guy over there?’ I said ‘I would love to play for him. He’s the manager of the Rangers’. Then I had a drink with him.
“And then four years later, he signed me! It was his son that told him. He said, ‘Dad, why don’t you go for Gazza?’ So, you know, to go to Rangers, it was a buzz.
“And the press were saying I wasn’t going to do very well. And yeah I loved it. I won everything in the first year. Players player (of the season) sportswriters (player of the season), scored a hat trick.”
Why Rangers can’t shop for another Gazza now
It was the longest period that Gazza managed to stay fit other than when he first came to prominence around the 1990 FIFA World Cup in Italy.
That his form dropped in his final season at Ibrox after a long period on the sidelines is indicative of how lucky Rangers were to see him at his peak.
Gazza is right, there was a big risk attached to signing him due to how badly injuries affected his time at Lazio but it paid off, although, had he been able to stay disciplined for one more season, he would have been immortal.
Rangers no longer have the resources to go out and sign a player like Paul Gascoigne.
What they have to do is prioritising unearthing gems based on good scouting and recruitment.
The game has changed immeasurably since the advent of the Premier League and the Champions League, ironically, the brainchild of former club secretary Cambell Ogilvie.
If only he knew.
