Ex-Rangers boss Michael Beale said that Utrecht loanee Sam Lammers first caught his eye during his time as a Chelsea youth coach.
The lanky striker impressed the Englishman whilst coming through the youth Academy of PSV Eindhoven, with Beale insisting that he’d followed Sam’s career ever since.
After a €9m (£7.7m) move from PSV Eindhoven to Atalanta failed to see the former Dutch youth international reach his seemingly untapped potential, Rangers pounced in the summer.
But after that stuttering stint in Scotland, which followed difficult spells across Italy and Germany, it’s taken a return to the country of his birth for Sam Lammers to finally find his form.
Sam Lammers scores again for Utrecht
There’s been plenty written about Sam Lammers in recent weeks as he hits a rich vein of goalscoring form with Utrecht.
Now, the striker’s goalscoring run has stretched to four on the bounce, with the forward netting yet another goal in Utrecht’s 5-1 demolition of PEC Zwolle.
Showing his predatory six-yard box instincts to react quickest to the ball coming off the post, it’s not exactly the work of the “number 10” Beale had in mind.
That’s Sam’s fifth goal in 12 Eredivisie games and it’s clear that this Dutch homecoming has been good for the forward.
Utrecht manager Ron Jans has been open about the Dutch club’s desire to sign the forward permanently, with Rangers’ £2.5m demands said to be a sticking point.
But the situation will be of genuine interest to Ibrox fans who are seeing a player who is technically one of their own tear it up whilst out on loan.
Sam Lammers Utrecht stats
- Goals/xG – 5/6.51
- Assists/xA – 3/1.71
- Shots/on target – 40/15
- Touches/in opposition box – 521/66
- Duels won/percentage – 83/47.7%
- Fouls won – 14
- Tackles won/percentage – 14/70%
A return to Rangers?
Naturally, the situation will have plenty at Rangers wondering if Sam Lammers has what it takes to make the grade at Ibrox.
If Utrecht are not willing to meet Rangers’ asking price – bearing in mind the Ibrox club paid £3.5m to sign Lammers in the summer – then he will be returning to Glasgow.
Having signed a four-year deal last summer, three of those are still left to run in Scotland and the situation is very much a live one for Rangers and the striker.
For the time being, Sam Lammers will be very much focused on Utrecht but with the striker improving in the Netherlands, Rangers will be keeping a close eye on how things develop.
