Former Rangers player Ally McCoist thinks that the form of on-loan attacker Ryan Kent might backfire on Steven Gerrard.
Kent has been one of the big success stories of the season at Ibrox, with the 22-year-old winger scoring six goals and adding six assists in just 23 Premiership games.
And that has led to McCoist saying that a loan move might be Rangers’ only chance of keeping him at the club next season.
Talking at Ayr Racecourse ahead of the Scottish Grand National, as quoted by the Daily Record, McCoist said, “Kent has been fabulous this season.
“Since coming back from his injury lay-off he’s been terrific and for me he was the best player on the park against Celtic. I’d imagine if there’s any way Steven could keep him, he’d be desperate to do so.
“However, it looks like another loan deal is the only way it could happen. His performances might just have priced Rangers out the market for him.”
OPINION
Kent has been brilliant this season and has proved that loans can work well for a club like Rangers. However, the downside is that Rangers have no claims on a player who has put himself in the spotlight, and we’d expect Premier League sides to be looking at him in the summer. Kent is 22 and may well fancy taking a shot at the top-flight in England, but it could be that his career would benefit from another season under Steven Gerrard. McCoist is probably right when he says that Kent is likely to be too expensive for Rangers to sign on a permanent deal. And, if he’s got no long-term future at Liverpool, they might want to cash in on a player while he’s playing well. However, Rangers should do everything they can to hang onto a player who is only likely to get better next season. Rangers would be a weaker side without him and it would cost them a lot to bring in a player as good.