Former Rangers footballer Alan Hutton has claimed that Ryan Kent ‘needs an arm around his shoulder’ from Giovanni van Bronckhorst amid his poor run of form at Ibrox.
In 10 appearances across all competitions so far this season, the Englishman is yet to find the back of the net. Indeed, the winger has struggled to impress at times and was even labelled as ‘lazy’ by Ally McCoist following their recent Champions League defeat to Ajax.
However, while talking about the player in an interview with Football Insider, Hutton outlined how he thinks Van Bronckhorst can get the best out of his man.
The pundit explained that having met Kent in person, he probably needs some care and support from his boss as opposed to ‘tough love’, while he also needs to relax in front of goal when opportunities come his way.
In full, he said: “From what I know of Ryan Kent, and I have met him a few times, he is a player who needs an arm around his shoulder. He needs that more than tough love.
“Under Steven Gerrard, I think he got that.
“Look, Ryan Kent will be the first to admit that he has to do better, especially in regards to numbers.
“He likes to take people on. He likes one v ones. It is just his end product.
“At this moment in time, he is trying a bit too hard.”
Was Ryan Kent better when playing under Steven Gerrard?
Yes
No
TIF Thoughts on Ryan Kent and Rangers…
To be fair, Kent struggled for goals with Rangers last season, too – netting just three in 46 games – so he’s never been prolific under Van Bronckhorst.
The season before that, however, he was much more potent, scoring 13 in all competitions under Steven Gerrard. And so, perhaps Hutton is right to suggest that the current Aston Villa manager was better at getting the best out of Kent.
Another issue that could be impacting poorly upon his form, though, could be the fact that his contract is up in 2023 and talks seem to have stalled, prompting much talk about his future.
Whatever the case is, Kent certainly could be doing a lot more for the team, especially when it comes to finding the back of the net, so it will be interesting to see if he can ever rediscover his goalscoring touch.