Rangers confirmed that they would be signing Charlton midfielder Joe Aribo subject to international clearance and said they were “delighted” in a tweet put out on Thursday afternoon.
One man far from delighted was Charlton manager Lee Bowyer who said it was the wrong move for the 22-year-old.
Aribo’s contract with Charlton expires at the end of the month and Rangers will only have to pay a small compensation fee for him, said to be £300,000.
An English club would likely have had to pay much more money for him.
Talking on the Jim White Show (talkSPORT, Thursday, 10am), Bowyer doubled down on his comments.
“There’s no disrespect for Rangers or Celtic or the Scottish football league, all I was talking about was for Joe’s career, that’s what I care about,” Bowyer said.
“Rangers is a massive club I’m not denying that. They’ve got great traditions and a great manager in Steven Gerrard and for me, the only positive would be working under Gerrard, maybe that’s why he’s gone there.”
Asked by an incredulous Jim White if that was the only positive Bowyer said, “For me, because tell me how many players over the past few years have gone to Rangers and gone onto the Premier League? As a stepping stone, I think Joe should have stayed in England. Brentford came to me a few days ago but Joe wasn’t even aware Brentford were interested in him. That’s wrong, his agent should have all the names down.
“Financially, he’s done well [moving to Rangers] but so has his agent. If he stayed in England his agent wouldn’t be getting the deal from Brentford that he got from Rangers.”
As you might imagine, Rangers fans aren’t happy with this. This is what they’re saying on Twitter:
Absolutely nothing to do with Bowyer wanting him to go somewhere that pays the most compensation, sure he had best interests for the kid…
— Chris McLaughlin (@Chr1sMcLaughlin) June 27, 2019
It’s hard to argue with this point. Bowyer says that he only had the interests of the player in mind but Charlton missed out on a significant fee by Aribo not staying in England. That’s quite a conflict of interest. Liverpool were instructed to pay £6.5million for Danny Ings in 2015 in similar circumstances. Aribo wouldn’t have commanded that much but Charlton would have got more than £300,000.
I think we can all agree moving from a small time club to a British institution in Rangers is the move most players would make.
Add in European football, Old Firm matches, fighting for trophies, a young dynamic team on the up with Steven Gerrard at the helm… #NoBrainer
— Thelionbrand (@thelionbrand) June 27, 2019
Playing in Europe and under a manager like Steven Gerrard or moving to Brentford? The English club might have sent more players to the Premier League in recent years but Rangers have only just got back to near the top after their financial problems. Under Gerrard, they’re looking to lift silverware next season. We think that Aribo has done the right thing and we think most players, given a straight choice between Rangers and Brentford this summer would do exactly the same thing.
Playing with better players.
Playing when he HAS to win every week.
Playing in Europe.
Learning from ex-Liverpool coaches.
Learning from one of the best English midfielders ever.
Playing in front of 50k fans every other week.
.
Yep, he won’t develop his career at @RangersFC ??????????????— Richard McLuckie (@Acemcl) June 27, 2019
Lee it’s cost Charlton money. We get it. You’re pissed off. Don’t pretend it’s about Joe Aribo’s development
As for Rangers. He’ll hopefully do well but better than him have failed. It’s a unique, high pressure environment he’s coming into. Let’s hope he thrives in it
— Fenner (@unionjackhat) June 27, 2019
Put aside which colour you are, if rangers/Celtic were in the EPL and had the same financial resources they would be top 6 clubs without a doubt. Both clubs are institutions widely recognised worldwide. Only Liverpool and Man Utd are on the same level.
— Petti WATP (@Petti_1972) June 27, 2019
I’m sure Joe will hate playing in front of 50,000 fans every second week, being in the mix for winners medals, playing in Europe and making a decent living. He should have gone to Brentford to play in front of two men and their dog ???????????
— Boy Seth (@Boy__Seth) June 27, 2019
The last bit is the giveaway that he’s pissed off. If Aribo stayed in England he would have got a bigger fee for him.
— ???????????????????????????? ???????? STEVIE (@snocher101) June 27, 2019
Dry your eyes Lee… pic.twitter.com/hE5At7919y
— laloyal (@latrueblues) June 27, 2019