OPINION
Rangers must reignite their summer bid to sign Liverpool rising star Ben Woodburn in January.
The forward, 19, is wasting away at Sheffield United, where he has had just 13 minutes of action since joining on a loan in the summer that will surely be halted prematurely in the winter window.
Woodburn played for Liverpool Under-23s against Derby on Sunday because he cannot get a game for Chris Wilder’s Blades and there is no imminent prospect of him doing so.
This is where Rangers must jump in and make another move.
The English newspaper claimed via their print edition (Sunday 24 June, Page 88) that Steven Gerrard contacted his former club to inquire about the youngster’s availability.
Sheffield United won that race, but Gerrard will have a good chance of being second time lucky given the game time given to Liverpool loanees Ovie Ejaria and Ryan Kent this season.
Woodburn is highly rated on Merseyside and has made 11 appearances for the first team in all competitions in his career so far, but he has suffered a few bumps and scrapes in his career in the current calendar year.
Sheffield United are flying high in the Championship, so Wilde is within his rights to freeze out the Wales international.
That said, Liverpool know that they have possibly a once in a generation talent in Ben Woodburn, so the next stage of his development will be vitally important if he is to reach his enormous potential.
A loan move to Rangers, where he would like up with his former youth team boss Gerrard, seems like the perfect next step in his career.
He could play regular senior football, get used to the demands of a pressure-cooker environment and benefit from the coaching of the Liverpool icon and his staff.
The brilliant Welshman has the ability to light up the Scottish Premiership and could prove to be one of the signings of the season in the winter window.