Former Liverpool skipper and Premier League legend, Steven Gerrard, was officially unveiled as the new manager of Rangers Football Club a few days ago. Gerrard’s appointment to the managerial hot-seat at the Ibrox Stadium came after Graeme Murty was dismissed from the position following Rangers’ 5-0 hammering at the hands of their arch-rivals, Celtic, at the Celtic Park last weekend.
Murty initially worked as the interim manager when Pedro Caixinha was sacked back in October. After Derek McInnes rejected the offer to be the manager of the Gers, Murty was told that he would remain in charge of the Scottish Premiership outfit until the end of the season. However, Rangers’ shambolic defeat in the Old Firm derby proved to be his last game as the manager of the club.
Rangers need a big name to shake the players out of their apathy and go toe-to-toe against the Bhoys next season and Gerrard’s entry could cultivate a new sense of belief amongst the players. It seems that the former English international has already started to plan for the summer transfer window and has placed Martin Skrtel on his radar, as per one of the latest reports by The Scottish Sun.
Skrtel had played with Gerrard during their time together at Liverpool and it goes without saying that they know each other pretty well. Having started his youth career at Prievidza, the Slovakian international kicked off his senior career with Trencin before moving to Zenit Saint Petersburg. After his spell in Russia, he inked a moved to the Anfield and became a household name.
In the summer transfer window of 2016, he put his pen to paper for the Turkish outfit, Fenerbahce, and he still plies his trade with them. He has been handed 19 appearances in the Super Lig so far this season and he has mustered 3 goals. He has also managed 1.1 tackles, 1.4 interceptions, 7.7 clearances and 0.6 blocks per game on an average.
Gerrard’s apparent interest to sign Skrtel makes a lot of sense, for the latter has a lot of experience under his belt. The 33-year-old is a strong and resilient centre-back, is exceptional in the air and has the calibre to enhance the quality of the defence of the Light Blues. Rangers would need some proven players with notable pedigree next season and the presence of a galvanising personality like Skrtel could do wonders for them.
Statistics Credits: WhoScored
