Scott McDermott and Jonny McFarlane spent some time discussing the possibility of Rangers selling some players in January during the latest edition of the Record Rangers podcast.
This comes after the club revealed that they made an operating loss of £15.9m for the year ending 30th June – an increase from their operating loss of £11.6m for the previous year.
As well as that, Rangers will need to secure a total of £23.2m in funding, which club chairman Douglas Park and director John Bennett have committed to providing via loans, just to get through the next two seasons.
With profiting from player sales having been described as a ‘widely untapped’ market for Rangers, perhaps they could improve their financial situation by tapping into this market and cashing in on some of their most valuable assets on the pitch, and so it may be understandable why McFarlane asked McDermott if he thinks the club will look to move players on in January during this recent edition of the Record Rangers podcast.
However, McDermott indicated that he doesn’t think the Glasgow club will use the upcoming January transfer window as an opportunity to boost their finances via player sales, saying:
“I think this season is an exception. This season is almost kind of sacrosanct, they cannot afford to lose any of their best players, and that’s why the bid for [Alfredo] Morelos was turned down.
“They won’t regret it if, come May, they’re standing with a league title and at least another trophy in the cabinet.”
Do you think Rangers will make a major player sale in January?
YES
NO
TIF Thoughts on what McDermott had to say about the possibility of Rangers selling players in January…
As per Transfermarkt, Rangers’ most valuable player is Morelos by some distance and he is currently their second-highest goalscorer (seven) for the 2020/21 campaign.
Captain James Tavernier is their next highest-valued player, while he is followed by Kemar Roofe and Ianis Hagi – both of whom only joined the club permanently in the summer.
In addition to being Rangers’ captain, Tavernier is Rangers’ top goalscorer for the 2020/21 season at present, Roofe is their joint-third-highest goalscorer and Hagi is the Glasgow club’s second-highest assist provider for the current campaign.
So, as it seems that Rangers’ most valuable players are also key members of their squad, and as Steven Gerrard’s side are attempting to stop their Old Firm rivals from winning what would be a historic 10th Premiership title in a row this term, perhaps it is unlikely that Rangers will cash in on some of their prized playing assets in January, as McDermott suggested, if they view domestic success as their primary objective this term.