Giovanni van Bronckhorst has hailed Connor Goldson as one of the 'pillars' of his Rangers team as he expressed his delight at his decision to stay with the club.
The big defender has been an ever-present in the Light Blues' defence since his arrival from Brighton under now Aston Villa boss Steven Gerrard. He continued that main stay position and form under the Dutchman and will now remain in a key role at the club after putting pen to paper on a new four-year deal.
The 29-year-old was heading out of contract and was linked with clubs south of the border with fears that he could fancy one last crack at the big time in England. But after taking a family holiday and time away, he decided Rangers was the place he wanted to be as he dedicated his long-term future to the club - a move which handed his gaffer a major boost going into the new season.
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The Europa League finalists are set to begin their quest to reach the Champions League group stages in a matter of weeks with two rounds of qualifying to negotiate while they will be going all out to try win back the Premiership title they lost to Celtic last season and add more domestic silverware.
Goldson will be a key man in any of those hopes, with the boss expressing his delight.
He said: "Of course it is going to be more difficult the more players that come to the end of their contract and Connor was becoming a free agent.
"I think he did fantastic for the team last season and I was really happy that he chose to stay on.
"Of course he had the possibility to go to another club and the Premier League is a big league for everyone.
"I think also Connor felt what he has now at Rangers, everything in his life as well.
"I think in the end he wanted to continue his career here instead of going to another team and I am happy because he is one of the pillars of this team."
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