Rangers have failed to live up to the monumental expectations that were heaped upon them after they convincingly won the Scottish Championship last season to make a comeback to the first tier of Scottish football after four long years. It’s not Rangers’ fault totally.
In hindsight, it was maybe a bit far-fetched to expect they would be pushing their arch rivals Celtic for the title right after their comeback to the Premiership. Celtic have been winning the Premiership for five straight seasons and have a much stronger setup when compared to the Gers.
It is not an overnight process to translate a Championship side to a team who are strong enough to contend for the title in the top-flight. Mark Warburton needs plaudits for the good work he has done at Ibrox which is the reason Rangers are second in the Premiership now ahead of the likes of Aberdeen and Hearts. However, it is as clear as daylight that Rangers are far behind their rivals Celtic in terms of the quality of the squad and they need to react in the transfer market to overcome the deficit.
Rangers are eyeing a cut-price deal for Aston Villa striker Rushian Hepburn-Murphy, according to The Daily Mail.
The 18-year-old has been in sublime form for the under-23 squad of the Villans this season but is finding it hard to get a chance in the first team with so many strikers already at Villa Park in the likes of Jordan Ayew, Ross McCormack, Gabriel Agbonlahor, Rudy Gestede, Jonathan Kodija and Libor Kozák.
The English under-19 international will be out of contract this summer at Villa Park and Rangers are looking to pounce on the opportunity to tie him down.
If the youngster joins an English club following his contract expiry at Villa, the Villans would be entitled to a hefty tribunal fee which would easily reach millions but a foreign club could bag his signature for a nominal amount.
The same rules allowed the Ibrox side to acquire English talents Jordan Rossiter and Joe Dodoo for a combined £500,000 fee earlier this summer.
Rangers getting the signature of Rushian Hepburn-Murphy would be a brilliant deal for both parties. An attacker with an enormous potential and versatility to play anywhere in the attacking third, Hepburn-Murphy could be a huge success at Ibrox in the long run and Rangers won’t need to spend a fortune on him.
At the same time, they will get to have a nice group of young and promising players who can develop around each other and bring the glory days back at Ibrox.
Celtic made one of the biggest bargains in recent history with the signing of Moussa Dembele this summer from Fulham with a nominal tribunal fee. The Frenchman is proving to be a huge success at Paradise. Hepburn-Murphy has the potential of having a similar story at the other half of Glasgow.
