So, as I enter the second instalment of Rangers greatest ever signings I feel I’m going to focus heavily on players acquired during the 9 in a row era. Of course, these players I’m selecting are from my personal perspective but it’s certainly players I feel offered great value for money and what we received in return in terms of effort, performances and what they helped the club achieve.
Brian Laudrup was signed from Fiorentina in the summer of 1994 for a modest fee of £2.3 million and having spent the previous season on loan at AC Milan with little success and few chances, he claimed he didn’t want to go back to the Florence club and he searched for a move away from Italy. When I say little success, he still managed to be part of the team that won the Serie A and the Champions League but he was quoted saying he never truly felt part of that team, so when Walter offered him the chance to sign for Rangers the manager promised he knew how to utilize him and convinced Brian he would let him have a free role in the team. These were the words he was dying to hear and he said the moment he heard Walter tell him his plans his mind was made up. The massively famous exchange between the two talking about him offered the chance to play for Barcelona and him turning them down only for Walter to say, “So you’d prefer to play Falkirk on a Tuesday night?” with Brian replying “Yeah, I love it”. This still lives in the memories of fans as one of the reasons we loved him.
These were the words he was dying to hear and he said the moment he heard Walter tell him his plans his mind was made up. The massively famous exchange between the two talking about him offered the chance to play for Barcelona and him turning them down only for Walter to say, “So you’d prefer to play Falkirk on a Tuesday night?” with Brian replying “Yeah, I love it”. This still lives in the memories of fans as one of the reasons we loved him.
I’ll be honest, when Brian signed I had didn’t really have much knowledge of the kind of player he was. I was ignorant of any of the leagues outside Scotland but I had obviously heard of his previous clubs from watching Football Italia on Channel 4. Probably showing my age there but I was 14 when he signed for Rangers and I didn’t care for any other clubs. To be perfectly honest I still don’t. Laudrup turned out to be one of the best players if not the greatest player I’ve seen at Ibrox, I know that’s a massive statement but I still haven’t seen a winger with the skill than man possessed with a ball at his feet. His pace and technical ability was an absolute joy to watch and I still can’t hazard a guess at how many defenders he embarrassed on a weekly basis with his flair and trickery.
Not only did he help the team score goals but he also scored his fair share, he accumulated 151 appearances, scoring 45 goals and most notably scored the goal that clinched 9 in a row. Let’s face it, I had to talk about this goal. The most important goal of his career and one of the most important in the club’s history. I appreciate every Rangers fan knows exactly how this goal went down but I feel it certainly needs going over due to the nature of the subject.
The Gers travelled to Tannadice during midweek knowing victory would secure their place in the history books and secure the coveted 9th championship in a row. With 10 minutes on the clock, Charlie Miller received the ball from a throw in on the left-hand side and fired over a cross only for Laudrup to meet the ball with a bullet header into the keeper’s top right hand corner. The fans erupted with sheer exuberance and it went down as the greatest domestic achievement for the club. Brian played for the club for four seasons and has arguably been one of the best players ever to play for Glasgow Rangers. During his time, he managed to win three league titles, a Scottish cup and a league cup, coupled with winning the SFWA Footballer of the Year and SPFA Players Player of the Year, Brian was inducted into the Rangers Hall of Fame and he’s also been included in the Scottish Football Hall of Fame. This gives you an idea of how well regarded he was for his time in Scotland and will continue to down as one of the greatest signings the club has on record.