Michael Beale may have dropped a clue over the future of Allan McGregor by insisting: 'He is not finished yet'.
The Rangers No1 is set to make his 500th appearance for the Light Blues across two spells with the Ibrox gaffer hailing the veteran as the 'cornerstone' to everything that has been good about the club since he first arrived alongside Steven Gerrard back in 2018.
The 41-year-old looked set to retire last summer but decided to pen a new one-year deal under former boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst. He started the season as No2 to Jon McLaughlin but quickly recaptured his spot in the sticks with Beale stating that the former Scotland international was his first-choice. His future beyond the end of the current campaign is yet to be determined but his club boss has offered a potential hint that he would like him to stick around for even longer.
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Speaking to Rangers TV, Beale said: "To achieve 500 games for Rangers is a very special achievement. Very few have done it in the past, certainly to the age that Allan has played and the achievements that he has had for the club. In the time I have worked with him here he is probably on the best part of 200, nearly 250 games.
"He has been outstanding. Some of the saves that he has made… there are too many to mention. Every season he has earned us points, he has won us games and got us through to the next round in cup competitions. When you look at him day in, day out it’s no secret – hard work, preparation, dedication to your craft and always intrigued and open-eyed in terms of learning and wanting to get better.
"This is a man in his forties who trains every day like he is a teenager and he is watching and learning all the time. He is very self-reflective, self-critical if you like.
"He is willing to take feedback on and he just wants to win and get better. If that can’t rub off on you as a young player – and to be honest, everyone in the squad is younger than him – then you’re not opening your eyes to bettering yourself.
"I think Allan is a cornerstone to everything that’s been good about this club since I came in 2018 and I think he can be hugely proud. He is not finished yet – it will be 500-and-something. It won’t be 500, it won’t end there.
"But I think the service that he has given this football club, as a young boy coming through our academy, is absolutely outstanding."
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