Much has been made of the players Scottish Premiership giants Rangers could – and maybe should – have signed over the years.
Rangers were linked with Albert Gudmundsson shortly before the Icelandic attacker joined Fiorentina for a club-record fee of £21 million. Giovanni van Bronckhorst wanted Ian Maatsen at Ibrox, only to see him secure a £37 million move to Aston Villa after helping Borussia Dortmund reach the Champions League final.
Joey Veerman, the PSV Eindhoven playmaker, is another Rangers reportedly wanted at one point.
But, while Rangers certainly have their fair share of regrets, the Scottish League Cup finalists have also had the good fortune, or the good foresight, to stay clear of the odd blunder.
Because while Philippe Clement heads to Hampden wondering whether he should start Jefte Vital, Ridvan Yilmaz or both – Yilmaz was outstanding on the left-wing for Rangers during the Europa League draw with Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday – there will not be too many Feyenoord supporters clamouring to see Gijs Smal included in the first XI again any time soon.
- READ MORE: Rangers Transfer History 2016-Present
Former Rangers target Gijs Smal in ‘terrible’ form for Feyenoord
According to Rotterdam-based publication 1908, Rangers were keen to snap up Gijs Smal before his FC Twente contract expired in July. The 27-year-old would instead put pen to paper on a long-term deal with Feyenoord.
Now, this was quite the show of faith from the 2023 Eredivisie champions.
Smal struggled during his final season in Enschede. But Feyenoord were willing to overlook a difficult 2023/24 campaign in the hope that Smal could recapture his form from the year prior, when the late-bloomer evolved into arguably the Eredivisie’s stand-out left-back.
But, with his performances at De Kuip nothing much to write home about, Smal’s Twente peak feels further away from ever.
And, a word of warning Gijs, if you ever find yourself in close proximity to Willem van Hanegem, we’d reccommend donning some form of headwear.
“I’m going to give him a slap around the ear!” the Dutch legend tells Algemeen Dagblad. “[Smal] is terrible every time. That’s sad to see.”
Back in 2022/23, Smal finished joint third in the Eredivisie assist charts with 10, joining then-Twente teammate and now-Rangers winger Vaclav Cerny [11] on the podium.
Smal has set up a grand total of only four goals in the year-and-a-half since then, however.
Ridvan Yilmaz and Jefte show Rangers didn’t need Smal anyway
There are similarities, perhaps, with Rangers’ own James Tavernier. But while the Ibrox skipper frequently makes up for the odd defensive blunder with an inch-perfect set-piece or a thumping finish, Smal’s lack of impact in the final third coupled with his lack of ‘urgency’ at the other end has certainly raised eyebrows.
“Look at how he runs back,” former Netherlands and Barcelona playmaker Ibrahim Affelay told NOS after Smal was caught high up the pitch as Feyenoord threw away a 2-0 lead to draw with Groningen earlier in the season.
“(He runs) as if he has a sack of potatoes on his back.”
“I don’t see any urgency,” adds Pierre van Hooijdonk, once of Celtic. “You don’t see the real sprinting back.”
This is not the first time Van Hanegem has taken issue with Smal, meanwhile. Back in September, he felt that the Volendam academy graduate was guilty of becoming a little complacent.
“Listen: you’re busy for 90 minutes, a bit longer, and you provide one good cross. Should I say: Wow, that’s great!’?”, Van Hanegem asked on the Willem and Wessel podcast. “That’s of course a bit too little. You’re not signed for that.
“Not to think that, if you do something well once or twice, you’ve done it well. Of course not. You have to get better.”
Fortunately for Rangers, with Ridvan Yilmaz and Jefte to choose from, Philippe Clement’s own left-back options look stronger than ever.
