Michael Beale has become known for wanting to play two No.10s in his Rangers team.
But at this rate he could have EIGHT at his disposal for just three slots. With news that Southampton might look to offload Joe Aribo, I’ve even heard some Gers fans say the club should bring him back.
But where would he fit in? Incidentally, if Michael could get Aribo back on loan, I’m sure it’s something he’ll have looked at, given the Nigerian’s contribution last time around. But, seriously, you can’t just keep signing players for the same position. And after getting Todd Cantwell from Norwich City last week, the manager has an abundance of No.10’s – Ryan Kent, Malik Tillman, Ianis Hagi, Scott Arfield, Tom Lawrence, Scott Wright and Cantwell. Then, of course, he also has young Alex Lowry.
It got me thinking about what might be going through Lowry’s head right now, especially after watching Cantwell come through the door. That position, middle to front, is where Lowry wants to play. And technically he’s got all the talent in the world. The question now is, how is he going to get minutes in this Rangers side?
It would be easy for the kid to get down about it, go in a huff, and ask why the club is signing more attacking midfielders. But that’s where we’ll really find out about Lowry’s mentality.
Because I’ve got news for him. For any young player to make it at Rangers – and by that I mean become a regular – you have to be exceptional. When I think back to my time at the club, three examples come to mind.
Barry Ferguson is the first. He was an exceptional, generational talent who would have walked into any side. But it wasn’t just about what he could do on the pitch. Fergie’s mentality was outstanding.
Despite coming into a squad bursting with top international players, his attitude was that no one was going to stop him becoming a Rangers player.
The next one is Allan McGregor. You could have understood if he’d given up on becoming Rangers keeper when he was behind the likes of Stefan Klos.
He watched guys such as Lionel Letizi and Lionel Charbonnier come in and take the jersey. But Greegsy’s mindset was always about being the No.1 at Ibrox. And he made it happen.
The other one is Alan Hutton. He came through the ranks at Ibrox at a difficult time for the club. But his attitude and professionalism was so strong, nothing was going to stop him. Look at the career he’s had, at Rangers and in the Premier League with Spurs and Aston Villa.
There’s no doubt that by signing all of these guys who operate in the same area of the pitch it’s blocking Lowry’s pathway.
So right now, Michael has to come up with a way of getting him game time. But I’ll tell you what, he’s only going to get those minutes if he earns them. The club clearly believe they’ve got a big talent in Lowry but he has to show he has the mentality to go in and play.
When you have a lot of good players in front of you, it’s up to you to move them out of the way. Lowry – or any young player at Rangers – has to ask himself, ‘What do I want, how do I get it and what am I actually doing to achieve it?’
They’ve got the ability, that’s already there. If they didn’t have it, they wouldn’t be at Rangers. But how strong is your character to deal with that negative feeling of seeing so many players ahead of you?
They have to be driven and single-minded enough to say, ‘I don’t care who they’re signing. I want that shirt.’ And then it’s about how you’re going to do it. Lowry has to put in some serious work now.
When Arfield, Hagi and Cantwell are having lunch or going home, he has to be working to become as good as or better than them.
If it’s strength and conditioning, if it’s decision making, if it’s passing, shooting, whatever, he has to put the work in.
When you get involved in the first team and get on their schedule, it’s easy to think you’re a first-team player. Sometimes you can lose that wee bit of hunger.
But these young boys like Lowry need to ask themselves what they’re doing in the afternoons. Are they going for a coffee or going home to go on the PlayStation? Because the reality is they could – and should – be working on their game.
Until you’re actually a regular in that starting XI you don’t play for Rangers – you only train with them. At the moment, Lowry is an eight or 10-minute performer at Ibrox when they’re winning a game.
But he has to be pushing to get into the manager’s line-up, which poses a question. Because even if you do that, it might still NOT happen for you at Rangers. That’s how tough it is to make it there.
But if you put the work in, what it will do is ensure you will have a career elsewhere. And in the future, you just might find your way back to Rangers. I know that better than anyone. I found my way back to the club after leaving for the first time.
The best example is probably Paul Pogba leaving Manchester United only to return later in his career for £90million. It can happen. But it will only happen if you graft.
I understand why someone like Lowry might feel a bit frustrated at Rangers right now. But it’s up to him now to become the guy who can strengthen that position in Michael’s team And ensure that the manager doesn’t have to go looking for any more No.10s.
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