OPINION
While Rangers might have had a turbulent couple of months recently, no one has been through as much as veteran defender Lee Wallace – and it has had one pundit bemoaning his treatment at Ibrox.
The 31-year-old former captain was a fringe figure last season due to injury but that did not stop him from being thrust into the limelight after the alleged bust-up with former boss Graeme Murty and Kenny Miller, which resulted in his suspension from the club.
He made a return to action this season under Steven Gerrard, but the new manager then dashed his hopes of a long-term future by axing him from the Europa League squad.
It has led to former Gers star Barry Ferguson weeping over his treatment, insisting he has plenty to bring to not only the club but his country as well.
He told the Daily Record: “It did look as if Steven Gerrard was going to give him an opportunity but Wallace was then left out of the squad for the Europa League. That will have been a really sore one to take as it suggests he’s surplus to requirements.
“I’m sad about that because I really rate him. He has something to offer Rangers and Scotland for that matter. I was looking forward to seeing him getting back to his best but it now looks as if, unfortunately, he’s going to have to move elsewhere to get a regular game.
“I don’t know him but I feel for him all the same because everything I hear about Lee as a person is really positive.”
Wallace might be an experienced head, but is he any better than the likes of Borna Barisic or Jon Flanagan? Absolutely not.
Gerrard is taking Rangers to the next level and it is a new chapter in their history – so getting rid of the old guard is not something to criticise but something to celebrate.
There will be no sleep lost over Wallace’s future by the Ibrox boss or those above him in the boardroom, and securing his exit either in January or letting him depart at the end of his contract at the end of the season is a no brainer.
Ferguson is remembering the glory days at the club but while Wallace has been a dependable performer, he is not the future.