- John Brown reveals he urged Rangers to sign Jamie Vardy for around £500k in 2011/12.
- Ally McCoist backed the move, but Craig Whyte’s regime blocked any potential deal.
- The forward later joined Leicester City and became a Premier League and England star.
Former Rangers defender and scout John Brown has revealed how close the club came to signing Jamie Vardy during Ally McCoist’s early spell in charge.
Speaking on Craig Campbell’s podcast, Brown lifted the lid on a missed opportunity that now looks extraordinary given what Vardy would go on to achieve in the game.
“I was doing the scouting when [Ally McCoist] came in,” Brown explained.
“The biggest one we looked at that we never signed was Jamie Vardy.”
At the time, Vardy was playing non-league football with Fleetwood Town, still well under the radar.
Craig Whyte blocks Jamie Vardy deal
Brown was sent to watch him and immediately recognised his potential.
“During the bad years, while Coisty was the manager and Craig Whyte was in charge,” he revealed.
“I was sent down to a non-league game and seen him.”
“I just said to Coisty: ‘you need to get him signed’. He’s non-league but if we’ve got half a million, get him.”
Despite the clear recommendation, Brown knew the situation behind the scenes would make any deal difficult.
Craig Whyte’s control of the club meant even relatively small fees were unlikely to be approved.
“But Craig Whyte was never going to make that happen,” Brown admitted.
Tagged and bagged for Rangers move
Vardy’s circumstances at the time made the scouting mission even more unusual.
Brown revealed he was one of very few keeping tabs on the striker, partly due to restrictions that limited his appearances.
“Jamie Vardy never signed for Leicester until 18 months later and at the time I was the only scout at Fleetwood watching him,” he said.
“I could only watch him at home games as he had a tag and a criminal record at the time which meant he couldn’t play away games!”
Brown insists McCoist did push for the move, but the outcome always felt inevitable given the financial backdrop.
“Coisty did go to Craig Whyte, but you knew he was never going to make an offer,” he said.
“He was a stick on and Coisty wanted him.”
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Looking back, Brown believes the addition of Vardy could have made a major difference to Rangers during a difficult period.
Brown believes he would have complimented the already experienced players at Ibrox.
“He would have won that league with him because he still had [Nikica] Jelavic, [Allan] McGregor and [Steven] Davis during that period,” he said.
“He would have helped Coisty so much as some of the senior players latterly really downed tools and let him down.”
Vardy would eventually move to Leicester City and go on to become one of the most remarkable success stories in modern football.
He would fire the Foxes to both the Championship and Premier League titles in England.
He also ended up playing for England at Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup.
The now 39-year-old spent 13 years at the King Power Stadium before departing for Italian side Cremonese last summer.
For Rangers, it is another reminder of how different things might have been if the club had been in a position to act on the recommendations being made behind the scenes.
