Rangers chairman Andrew Cavenagh outlined a new transfer policy in mid-May. He promised a strategy with a pro-Scottish bias following a season of chaos and collapse for the Ibrox side.
However, head coach Derek McInnes has started the new season with poor results and few Scottish additions. Rangers drew their first league game at Dundee United. They then lost 2-1 to Jagiellonia Bialystok in Poland on Thursday in the first leg of their Europa League qualifying tie.
McInnes compared the performance to the team's struggles last season. He took ownership of the result but called on the recruitment team to bring in more players. Daisuke Yokota quickly arrived.
McInnes identified flaws including giving up the ball too easily in defense and failing to hold it together in attack. If Rangers beat Jagiellonia Bialystok at Ibrox next week, they will face Larne or Iberia Tbilisi in the play-off round. Failing to reach the Europa League group stage would be a disaster.
McInnes, a pragmatic Rangers man and former Hearts gaffer, replaced Danny Rohl. Rohl left for a job in Austria with Red Bull Salzburg after the club made a financial offer that Rangers quickly accepted. Rohl had previously inherited a mess from Russell Martin. In a long interview after his move, Rohl gave the impression he was not ready for the Rangers job.
Rangers recruitment team
Rangers avoid using a single sporting director, a concept that causes alarm and is known as The Kevin Thelwell Effect. Cavenagh prefers a multi-person approach involving himself, CEO Jim Gillespie, technical director Dan Purdy, performance director Stig-Inge Bjornebye, Gretar Steinsson of 49ers Enterprises, and the manager.
"I think it worked well in January," Cavenagh said of the system.
That winter window brought in Andreas Skov-Olsen on loan with a view to a £9million transfer. Rangers also committed £5million-plus to Ryan Naderi from the third division in Germany. Tochi Chukwuani arrived for £4.3m but has had little impact.
Tuur Rommens also arrived in January and made a good early impression, but he has recently struggled like his teammates.
Cavenagh insisted the club would prioritize domestic talent to build a Scottish core with chemistry, leadership, steel and footballing IQ.
"We have a pro-Scottish bias in the club today," Cavenagh said. "Meaning, if you have two players roughly equal and one is Scottish, we will take the Scottish player."
Scottish transfer targets
Despite Cavenagh's promise, only two of the nine recent signings are Scots. Ross McCrorie is currently a squad player. Lawrence Shankland struggled at a higher level with Scotland in the World Cup and missed the Jagiellonia Bialystok match. He is in danger of becoming a captain excluded from bigger European fixtures.
Cammy Devlin offers SPFL experience. Other reported transfer targets include Couhaib Driouech of PSV and Jahnoah Markelo of Coventry, neither of whom grew up playing on Troon beach. A move for Bologna midfielder Lewis Ferguson seems unlikely.
Rangers have spent circa £60m gross on players since last summer, and £70m over a year. Yet McInnes selected seven players from last season's squad in his first two starting line-ups.
Defensive errors remain a problem. Manny Fernandez has defended atrociously for all three goals conceded this term. The Nigeria international previously drew comparisons to Beckenbauer.
Fringe players for sale
Rangers need to sell expendable players to fund new full-backs, a central defender and attacking reinforcements with pace, creativity and attitude.
Nico Raskin missed recent games and could leave. He and Thelo Aasgaard both went to the World Cup. Youssef Chermiti also retains admirers. Celtic are fielding £25m offers for Arne Engels, showing that market interest exists.
Aasgaard, Fernandez and Chermiti are inconsistent and sometimes barely look interested. Other squad members have also struggled. Mohamed Diomande is becoming tiresome. Olwethu Makhanya and Vanja Dragojevic have yet to get going.
McInnes has a different coaching style than Rohl and Martin. He usually organizes teams and makes them hard to beat, but his Rangers side currently lacks those traits.
McInnes faces a unique test of his coaching, man-management and ability to handle those above him in the club hierarchy. He must synchronize the board's failing squad-building blueprint with a team making costly mistakes. He now has three-and-a-bit weeks before the transfer window shuts to fix the squad.
