Rangers winger Ryan Kent’s contract situation is “a real concern” after another poor showing in the side’s 2-1 defeat at St Johnstone on Sunday.
That is the opinion of Scottish football pundit Neil McCann, who was speaking on the BBC’s Scottish Football Podcast following the game.
Kent’s contract with Rangers is due to expire at the end of the season, meaning that the wide-man will be free to sign a pre-contract agreement with clubs from abroad in January.
According to Football Insider back in October, the 25-year-old rejected the offer of a new deal at Ibrox in favour of a move down south to the English Premier League.
But McCann has stated that Kent, who has previously been described as “unplayable” by journalist Andrew Dickson, needs to be performing in order for him to get offers from interested clubs when the time comes for him to leave Rangers.
He said: “Kent’s contract situation is a concern for me, a real concern.
“He’s running it down, I know Giovanni has spoken about whether he’d like to keep him or not, but I’m looking at him, and is he now starting to look away?
“But I tell you what he needs to understand – you need to be performing when you’re winding down a contract in order to get good options.”
TIF Thoughts on McCann’s comments…
We agree with McCann and believe that Rangers and Kent both need to establish what is likely to happen in the upcoming January transfer window in order for a suitable plan to be devised.
The former Liverpool man has struggled for solid performances of late, scoring just one goal in 11 Premiership appearances for the Gers this campaign, suggesting that a lack of output has been the main factor in his lack of form.
Leeds United were linked with a move for Kent at the end of the summer transfer window, and it could be plausible that the Whites look to strike a deal with the Oldham-born star in January.
Therefore, we agree with McCann and believe that Kent’s current contract situation, as well as his form, are big factors in the side falling away in the race for the Premiership title over the last few months.