---
title: "Has Derek McInnes paved the way for Lawrence Shankland’s return?"
canonical: "https://readrangers.com/2026/11/02/derek-mcinnes-rangers-lawrence-shankland-return"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Graeme Hanna"
section: "Rangers News"
published: "2026-11-02T18:06:35Z"
modified: "2026-11-02T18:20:36Z"
---

# Has Derek McInnes paved the way for Lawrence Shankland’s return?

**Derek McInnes appeared to pave the way for Lawrence Shankland’s return to the Rangers team with a revealing comment after the win over Aberdeen.**

The Gers secured a [1-0 victory in the Premier Sports Cup semi-final](https://readrangers.com/2026/10/31/rangers-1-aberdeen-0-report-hampden) on Saturday night, with a decider against Hibs to follow next month.

The manager praised the efforts of his team once again, but he bemoaned the missed opportunities and, effectively, how the players are making things harder for themselves.

Scotland striker Lawrence Shankland is expected to return by the middle of December, giving McInnes a fourth striker to choose from.

## McInnes calls for ‘grey hair’ in his team

In six of the last seven games, Ryan Naderi or Kevin Kelsy have scored for Rangers.

The strikers are doing their bit – that can’t be denied.

However, once again on Saturday we witnessed good chances being squandered and final balls misplaced, with Rangers still working on finesse and finding that killer instinct.

This is what Derek McInnes was alluding to, describing how he [wants more from his players](https://readrangers.com/2026/10/31/not-good-enough-derek-mcinnes-rangers-book-hampden-final), but you can’t help thinking that he had one of his currently injured players in mind.

[After the Hampden victory](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYnwQOficnA) over one of his former clubs, the Rangers boss stated:

“Some of the stats that we’re seeing more or less every week at the minute, it’s like making poor decisions, snatching at things, rushing crosses, not making the right pass, not putting the extra pass in.

“I’m going to keep saying that we’re a young team up there and it’s hard sometimes.

“You need an old man up there, an old head, nous, who knows just how to bring a bit of savvy and calmness to it. Thankfully, we had that with the goal today, but there were so many other times.

McInnes added, “When we look back on this game, there were so many other times where, if we just take more care, are less rushed and stay calm in those moments, then we create better opportunities rather than just having 25 shots and 20 of them flying over the bar.”

## More options and solutions for Rangers

An older man with nous and experience…if only he had a seasoned international pro on the fringes, getting closer to a first team return.

Lawrence Shankland, the club captain, fits that bill.

At 31, he is something of an elder statesman when compared to the likes of Ryan Naderi (23), Kevin Kelsy (22), Minsu Kim (20), Badredine Bouanani (21), and Djeidi Gassama (23).

The details above underline how young the Rangers’ front line is, as indicated by the manager.

Having Shankland available once again will add to the squad options, as well as posing another question on how McInnes should best utilise his forward options.

It’s not a bad problem to have, but one that he will need to identify the best solution for.

[Press Conference | Derek McInnes | 31 Oct 2026 (embedded)](https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/FYnwQOficnA?feature=oembed)