Pundit Frank McAvennie has torn into Rangers for their signing of John Souttar labelling the ordeal as a ‘terrible situation’.
Gers confirmed the signing of Souttar in January of last year on a pre-contract agreement from fellow Scottish side Hearts.
However, the move has not turned out the way he or the club would’ve hoped as he’s only played one match for Rangers, after he suffered an ankle injury in early August and hasn’t played since then.
This means the defender hasn’t played a minute under Michael Beale who took charge of the club at the end of November.
However, Michael Beale is hopeful the defender will return in “January or February”.
Speaking to Football Insider, McAvennie claimed that the club ‘want’ him to play two or three times a week and said ‘that is not going to happen.’
He stated, “They are buying players because they think they have to. That is wrong. Souttar’s fitness at Hearts was not great.
“He was getting one game a week at Hearts and all of a sudden they want to play him two or three times a week. It is not going to happen. He is obviously not ready for that.
“I forgot he was there. It is a terrible situation. I was injured myself for a long time and it is a horrible thing but at least the fans knew who I was.
“They do not even know if he is a good player. There is a massive difference between wearing the Hearts jersey and the Rangers jersey.”
TIF’s view on McAvennie’s comments…
We believe that Rangers have been seriously unlucky when it comes to injuries, as the squad has been riddled with them this season across multiple areas of the pitch.
The situation surrounding Souttar is an interesting one, as the 26-year-old clearly has talent he’s picked up six caps for Scotland and amassed 162 appearances in all competitions for Hearts.
However, it can’t be denied that the centre-half has always had injury problems. Indeed, last season alone he picked up four different injuries whilst playing in Edinburgh which meant it was always going to be a risk for Rangers.
When he is able to play at Ibrox, Beale should give him some opportunities to see if he can cut it in a Gers shirt. Then come the summer the boss can have a clearer idea of whether or if he wants to hold on to Souttar.