Rangers will look to streamline all over the park in the summer and will go for quality over quantity.
As many as 10 players could depart between those out of contract and those who are sitting in the stands most weeks, Gers boss Philippe Clement is already being linked with new replacements.
One of the areas of concern is between the sticks and, for all that Jack Butland is undisputed number one at Ibrox, what will Rangers do in the worst case scenario and the 6ft 5inch stopper gets injured?
Rangers linked with goalkeeper upgrade in Arnaud Bodart
At the moment, Jon McLaughlin and Robby McCrorie are providing the back up options with Kieran Wright performing Andy Firth’s old role and nowhere near the first team.
McLaughlin will leave on a free transfer and, with one year left on his current contract, it is unlikely that McCrorie will want to hang around with the Scotland number one role up for grabs and approaching his peak years.
He has shown in the past that he can be a good keeper and deserves to be playing regularly.
There is no doubt that he should have been given his chance at Rangers much earlier than he did.
A report by Belgian outfit Sudinfo Sports suggests that plans are already in place to provide quality cover for Jack Butland with the Rangers recruitment team looking to Philippe Clement’s homeland:
“At 26 years old and with Red Devil status, Arnaud Bodart still has good odds on the transfer market.
“As a result, despite the fact that he will enter the last year of his contract next season, Standard hopes to recover around €4M (bonus included) for his goalkeeper.
“At present, Glasgow Rangers have not yet made an official offer but one could well arrive soon.”
Being proactive is the right move if Butland leaves
Bodart has played for Belgium’s youth teams but not yet made the step up to senior level, given the standard of keepers he is fighting against it is understandable though.
£3.4m would be a lot for a player who would be getting signed to sit on the bench most weeks, unless he is a contingency plan should Jack Butland be sold for the reported £10-15m valuation that Rangers have slapped on his head.
One of the problems that we have seen under previous managers is not planning for the future.
Allan McGregor played for two seasons too long, Scott Arfield and Steven Davis were still key players in their mid to late thirties and now, six senior members of the squad are all available to speak to other clubs.
It could be that the report is based on nothing other than because we have a Belgian manager and our goalkeeper has been linked with a move away, of course.
Or, Rangers are already aware that he might be leaving.
It’s going to be a long summer.
