Aberdeen left midfielder Connor Barron on the bench in the League Cup Final clash with Rangers as murmurs around the player’s future continue.
The Aberdeen number 8 has found himself out of Barry Robson’s team as of late as the conversation continues around the out-of-contract midfielder.
Having just joined a new football agency, Connor Barron is free to speak with other clubs next month and Rangers may well be one club who consider the 21-year-old.
Especially when major doubts surround another Dons Academy product in Ryan Jack whose switch to Ibrox continues to irk the Pittodrie club’s fans.
Connor Barron on Aberdeen fringes
As Rangers defeated Aberdeen 1-0 at Hampden – courtesy of James Tavernier’s second-half strike – the club opted against bringing Connor Barron off the bench.
Considered one of the Scottish game’s brightest young talents, the Scotland U21 international has now failed to get off the bench in the club’s last three domestic matches.
Whilst Barron, 21, did play the entire match in Aberdeen’s shock Europa Conference League win over Eintracht Frankfurt, the midfielder appears to be out of the first-team as things stand.
Rangers fans hoping to catch a glimpse of the midfielder in the Hampden showpiece might’ve been surprised that the young Aberdeen star wasn’t involved.
Ryan Jack Rangers replacement?
A Rangers move for Connor Barron does appear to make sense given the Ibrox side’s need for homegrown options in the club’s European squad.
Rangers must have at least eight players who were trained in Scotland for three years before their 21st birthday in a full 25-man squad.
The club have missed out on several high-profile homegrown options in recent seasons – not least former Aberdeen star Lewis Ferguson – and a midfield gap in the squad could be about to open.
Rangers manager Philippe Clement has admitted discussions are on the horizon with Ryan Jack about the ex-Dons midfielder’s Scotland future.
This comes with the 31-year-old not being available for Rangers since the last international break, where the midfielder played the sum total of 11 minutes for the country.
If Ryan Jack is to move on from Rangers this summer, perhaps Connor Barron is the obvious choice to take his homegrown place in the squad.
