Glasgow Rangers have made a flying start to their 2023/24 preparations, signing Kieran Dowell and Dujon Sterling ahead of the summer transfer window opening, and there could be much more arrivals in the coming weeks.
Michael Beale looks set to have a busy pre-season and with several players departing the Ibrox side due to their contracts expiring, the supporters will be expecting high quality replacements.
However, in order to fund such signings, Beale may have to move on a few players who are still under contract. The likes of Scott Wright and Jon McLaughlin are obvious names who could make way for fresh faces, while another name should also be sold – Glen Kamara.
Indeed, even the manager thinks he could potentially be on the move, saying: “He is either going to be here for a considerable future or we will probably sell him this summer. When I came in he had an ankle problem he couldn’t get over. We kicked the operation into touch because we had a lot of injuries and Glen played through that for a period, then we gave him a chance to settle. He has not got back in the team because the boys that are playing have played very well.
“For Glen, everything is open really. But I think he needs to look at the competition that’s here in pre-season and decide whether there is going to be enough football for him.”
Will Glen Kamara leave Rangers this summer?
The £21k-per-week midfielder, once on the books at Premier League runners-up Arsenal, has found opportunities hard to come by under Beale since he arrived at the club in November, starting just 11 matches in total, and he has struggled to replicate his form from when Steven Gerrard was the manager.
During the 2021/2022 campaign, Kamara ranked fourth in the squad for passes per game (60.6), eight for key passes per game (1.3) and for interceptions per game (0.7), indicating he was one of the better members of the squad across these metrics, however, last season, he struggled, especially in the Champions League.
The step-up in class during Europe’s premier competition clearly fazed the midfielder as he only managed a Sofascore rating of 5.9/10 across four matches, averaging just 15 touches per game and winning just 25% of his total duels.
He was even dubbed “terrible” by Joshua Barrie in April 2022, and he just hasn’t quite looked himself this term.
Ligue 1 outfit Nice were credited with interest in him during the summer of 2022, however, the £10m fee quoted may have dropped significantly since, and this looks like a missed opportunity by the club.
His time at the Gers appears to be coming to an end and even though he was a key player previously, the Finland international has slipped down the pecking order and may not wear the jersey again.