Danny Rohl’s long-term John Souttar plan revealed after Rangers deal agreed
Danny Rohl still believes that Rangers defender John Souttar has a crucial role to play at the club long-term, sources have told Football Insider.
The German is short of options at the centre of his backline at the moment, and it is expected that the 29-year-old will continue to play a key role as the Scottish Premiership title race nears its conclusion.
Souttar has penned a new one-year deal with Rangers, with the Ibrox outfit also holding the option to keep him for a further year, and sources say that Rohl is keen to have the veteran as part of his squad beyond just next term.
The Scotland international hasn’t missed a single minute of league action so far in February, and his importance to the team has now been recognised by Rohl and the club hierarchy.
John Souttar deal reduces summer workload for Danny Rohl
The confirmation of Souttar’s new deal is hugely important in terms of putting a stop to any speculation regarding where his future could lie heading into the summer.
He could have walked away from the Glasgow giants as a free agent, had the club not put the offer of a new contract in front of him, but it also reduces the summer workload in the transfer market for Rohl and Co.
Rangers’ depth in defence has been heavily built upon loans this term, with all four of Max Aarons, Nasser Djiga, Jayden Meghoma and Derek Cornelius set to return to their parent clubs at the end of the season, while James Tavernier is also out of contract.
That had looked set to leave just three senior defenders at the club at the start of the summer, and Souttar has now provided another boost to that list.
Rohl would have been facing a significant rebuild of his defensive unit, but he now has both of his first-choice centre-back pairing secured for next term, allowing him to switch his focus elsewhere when the window opens again.
Rangers ‘happy’ to let Youssef Chermiti leave this summer
Former Aberdeen chief executive Keith Wyness told Football Insider earlier this week that Rangers would be “happy” to let Youssef Chermiti leave if they could strike a good deal for him this summer.
The striker has struggled to find consistency since he joined from Everton last summer, but has popped up with several crucial goals throughout the season.
Chermiti was heavily linked with a move away in the January transfer window, and Wyness believes that he has to start finding the back of the net more regularly if he is to secure his future at Ibrox long-term.
Wyness expects Rangers to be able to get a “very good return” on the youngster if he continues scoring between now and the end of the season, and he thinks that it could be enough to tempt them to cash in.
For more expert analysis on Souttar’s contract extension at Rangers, check out Ibrox News.