It’s fair to say that Barry Ferguson knows a thing or two about what it takes to be a winning midfielder at Rangers.
Titles. A treble. Cup wins, Champions League, domestic battles – he knows the score.
Barry Ferguson masterminded a Rangers win at Parkhead in May 2024, but as much as he wasn’t going to be the long-term answer in the dugout, his playing and coaching experiences more than qualify him to provide telling insight on what is still missing in the Rangers squad.
The short answer is someone in the mould of a Ferguson, or a Steven Davis – easier said than done to replicate that quality!
However, it’s Rangers’ failure to target that type of profile in recent years that points to the wider problem.
Despite all the midfielders signed this summer, the early signs indicate there is still no tempo setter, no one to dictate, to continually play through the lines, to slow the pace, and pick it up when required.
Barry Ferguson on the midfield profile Rangers still need
Barry Ferguson has had his say.
“As a former midfielder, I can’t help looking at another area of this Rangers team, the engine room,” he told the Daily Record.
“And for me, they still need a dominant force in the middle of the park.
“When things are tense and edgy out there, like it was at times the other night, they could do with someone who gets them together and says ‘Calm down’.
“Rangers need an orchestrator. That’s the best way I can describe it. All of my pals are crying out for someone up front or wide players. I get that.
“When I look at the midfield, I see a lot of good players in there who will get better, but Derek still needs someone who can dictate.
“A player who can speed up the play or slow it down. Someone who can fire the team up when needed or calm it down at the right time. They’re still missing a player who can control games of football for Rangers.”
He’s absolutely correct.
That player isn’t Nico Raskin or Tochi Chukwuani, and it’s certainly not Cammy Devlin.
It’s nowhere near Dan Neil yet, and it doesn’t look like it’s Vanja Dragojevic’s profile.
Rangers need that player but the option might elude yet another transfer window, with the immediate focus on quality at the top end of the pitch.
