Richard Gough claims that times have changed in Scotland and Rangers can no longer compete with the top sides to attract the best players.
After four years outside the Scottish top flight, Rangers finally returned back to the summit this season but it hasn’t lived up to early expectations.
Rangers have had a total of three managers in charge this season which certainly hasn’t helped their performances on the pitch as they finished in third position in the league table, nine points behind second-placed Aberdeen and 39 points off champions and bitter rivals Celtic.
Portuguese Pedro Caixinha is the current Rangers boss and he’ll be the one targeting players in the summer to help the Glaswegian side reach the top of Scottish football once again.
Speaking with the Scottish Sun, former Rangers skipper Richard Gough believes Scottish football is no longer glamorous enough to attract the best players and he believes that Rangers will find it very tough in the transfer market.
“When I first came to Rangers, I was the captain of Tottenham and we had already signed Terry Butcher, who was the captain of England,” he said.
“Rangers can’t go out and sign that kind of quality now. That’s a worry.
“It’s a completely different cycle. Scottish football is certainly not in its heyday.
“That anomaly we had between 1986 and maybe 2000 was a blip in the way British football runs.
“It started because the English clubs weren’t in Europe for the first five years. Everyone says to me that I was a Rangers man. That’s true, but Rangers also doubled my money when I came up from Tottenham.
“Maybe people didn’t know that. There was a financial consideration as well.
“Imagine that happening now? Rangers signing the Spurs captain, aged 24, and doubling his money.
“What would that be these days? Maybe £200,000 per week.”
Rangers’ activity in the last summer transfer window demonstrated that they are struggling to bring in players at the top level.
Players such as Joe Garner and Clint Hill were signed from Championship clubs and whereas the likes of Josh Windass and Lee Hodson were bought from League One and League Two teams.
Rangers’ third placed finish means that they have qualified for the Europa League and this could potentially attract better players to join the club this summer.
However, it’s going to be extremely difficult with the money available in the Premier League, not to mention the pulling power of champions Celtic who will play Champions League football next season.