Rangers decision on midfielder future is absolutely spot on
COMMENT
Rangers confirmed they had decided to terminate Niko Kranjcar’s contract on Friday after a season-and-a-half with the Gers – and the Ibrox hierarchy have got it absolutely spot on.
The veteran midfielder had an injury-hit time at Ibrox after a string of niggly problems either side of a serious knee injury which kept him out of action for nine months and restricted him to fewer than 30 appearances.
Kranjcar arrived at Ibrox from New York Cosmos in the summer of 2016 as Mark Warburton tried to build a squad capable of mounting a title challenge before suffering a torn ACL just a few months into the season.
After finally making his comeback at the start of this season, Kranjcar was very much a fringe player under Pedro Caixinha and Graeme Murty and found first-team chances increasingly difficult to come by.
While the 81-times capped star still showed flashes of the genius that made his a huge favourite at Spurs and Portsmouth, Kranjcar couldn’t get close to consistently replicating that type of form in Glasgow.
The move to terminate to Croatian’s contract could be a sign he is headed back across the Atlantic or to another league which uses a summer calendar – FIFA transfer rules mean Kranjcar can’t play for another club who play through the winter until June.
A number of Kranjcar’s Ibrox team-mates have come out and raved about his technical ability, despite it being clear his legs weren’t quite there, and the 33-year-old often looked frustrated as his body couldn’t keep up with what his brain wanted him to do.
Although it was always a huge gamble signing Kranjcar – and one which hasn’t paid off – it’s hard to lay any blame at the door of the midfielder for his spell with the Gers not going to plan.
In other Rangers news, the club must blow Celtic out of the water to sign the next Moussa Dembele.
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