The Rangers players’ contract predicament has angered Philippe Clement, who has stated that it “will never happen again” while he is in charge.
After the season, the contracts of eight players—including midfielder John Lundstram, who is being pursued by Turkish team Trabzonspor—will expire at Ibrox.
Following rumors that the 30-year-old had accepted conditions to quit the team, even though Clement had wanted him to remain in Glasgow, the manager gave an update on his situation and boldly predicted that the topic will resurface in the future.
“The club has made offers, but there isn’t an agreement yet,” he stated, as reported by The Scottish Sun on April 26. “Yes, I do believe he has other offers. I’m hoping he stays. I’m sure he enjoys being here.
“What you can offer and what other teams can offer will determine that. I dislike that significant players’ contracts are about to expire for this reason. It is detrimental to a club.
“It is definitely something that won’t happen again during my time here.”
Rangers need someone to put an end to this.
At Ibrox, it has long been a problem that important players enter the summer transfer market with uncertain futures because of expired contracts.
When it was expected that Connor Goldson would depart and return to England, he stunned everyone by signing a new contract two summers ago. This season, there are eight players, including Borna Barisic and Lundstram, replacing Ryan Kent and Alfredo Morelos from the previous campaign.
It is intolerable that the team has to deal with these problems year-round at the business end of the campaign; by now, someone ought to have taken charge of it.
It’s fantastic news for the club that Clement took the initiative to make it happen, but it’s also kind of embarrassing for those in higher positions.
Additionally, it indicates that the manager intends to stay at Ibrox for a longer, which is only positive. Hopefully, this will mean that the team will soon begin to function like a real club for the first time in a very long time.
