Rangers Review writer Jonny McFarlane believes that Ibrox ace Joe Aribo has what it takes to play in the Premier League.
Amid doubts surrounding his future, Aribo confirmed to a Nigerian radio station that he is “happy” in Glasgow but McFarlane has heralded his talents after a fine season for the Light Blues and has suggested that he could be destined for bigger things.
No player in the world featured more times than the Nigerian did this season as he played 69 matches, level with Liverpool’s Luis Diaz.
He scored eight goals and provided six assists in 31 Scottish Premiership matches with the brunt of his attacking output coming from midfield although the 25-year-old was regularly deployed as an unorthodox striker during the final stretch of the season and even scored in the Europa League final as the Gers dealt with injuries to Alfredo Morelos and Kemar Roofe.
Sky Sports pundit Kevin Thomson lauded the natural centre-midfielder as “phenomenal” for his versatility and for playing such a high volume of games and McFarlane feels he has what it takes to make it down south, similar to the claims being attributed to teammate Calvin Bassey in recent weeks amid interest in the defender.
Speaking on the Rangers Review YouTube channel, he said:
“He’s a guy that just has natural innate quality to kind of play in any position, and if he puts it all together, what a player Joe Aribo can be.
“He really, really does have every box ticked, every skill set that you could possibly want, and he’s absolutely ideal for the Premier League in terms of his raw physique, his power, his size, his frame.”
Could Aribo cut it in the Premier League?Yes
No
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TIF Thoughts on Aribo…
Since his move to Ibrox in 2019, the former Charlton player has seen his value increase dramatically from £450k to £9m and in the last 18 months it has almost tripled as he has come into his own.
Should Rangers cash in on Bassey?
Yes
No
He has consistently produced goals from the middle of the park reaching just shy of double figures in each of his three seasons in the Scottish capital and his average rating for the season of 7.23 places him eighth among all players in the league.
However, with his contract up in the next 12 months, he may well be surveying his options and quietly hoping that a move to a side in the English top-flight arises and then we would find out whether McFarlane was right all along.