FC Utrecht coach Ron Jans is delighted with the signing of Sam Lammers from Rangers while insisting that the Eredivisie outfit ‘couldn’t really wish for better’.
To say that the Dutchman returns home with a point to prove would be an understatement.
Sam Lammers set Atalanta and Rangers back around £12 million combined and flopped pretty badly at both clubs, only two goals and two assists to show for his 31 appearances for the Scottish Premiership giants.
Rangers appeared to have few qualms about farming Lammers out on loan when the opportunity arose this week, sending a player they snapped up for £3.5 million back to the Eredivisie just a few months into a four-year contract.
Rangers send Sam Lammers back to the Eredivisie
Now 26, and coming off the back of three and a half largely dreadful seasons, Lammers will know that he cannot dine out on that prolific spell at Heerenveen forever. That 19-goal campaign in Friesland is, after all, five years old now.
Utrecht boss Ron Jans, however, is convinced that there is still a very talented footballer in there somewhere, arguing that a club with their budget could hardly have dreamed of bringing in a superior option in the final third.
“We couldn’t really wish for better,” the veteran tactician tells the Twente website. “We are very happy with this. He is a technically very good player, and he can make the team play better football.”
There is no option to buy clause in Lammers’ contract. Utrecht, meanwhile, can only afford to stump up around £1.5 million for permanent deals, meaning Rangers would have to accept a substantial loss if they were to cash in on the Mick Beale signing come the summer.
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“Philippe Clement has made room for new arrivals by letting Sam Lammers leave after only six months at the club, and that’s another huge tick in the manager’s box,” former Rangers captian Barry Ferguson tells the Daily Record.
“It’s not easy to tell a new player that he’s surplus to requirements already. Especially a guy who arrived for a right few quid. But Clement has shown he is decisive and proactive by making it clear to Lammers that it’s just not working out.
“He gave the Dutchman plenty of opportunities to prove that he was worth persevering with but Lammers kept coming up short. What I would say is that it wasn’t because of a lack of effort. If anything he might have been trying a bit too hard to impress the manager and the fans.
“But it just wasn’t working for him or for Rangers and Clement has acted swiftly to do the right thing for both.”
Lammers’ place may now be taken by Fabio Silva, another out-of-favour attacker who changed clubs in search of a fresh start.
