Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
John is relishing fight for places
DECLAN John is relishing the competition for places in the Rangers squad after a summer of change at Ibrox.
Steven Gerrard’s arrival in Glasgow has brought with it a big turnover in players, with seven signed by the club so far during the close season.
John was brought in last summer by previous boss Pedro Caixinha and went on to establish himself at left-back following an injury to Lee Wallace, and he faces competition to retain his spot f ollowing t he arrival of Jon Flanagan.
The f ormer Liverpool man joined on a free last week and is the latest in a string of defensive reinforcements brought in by Gerrard, with Nikola Katic and Connor Goldson also arriving.
John is looking forward to working under the former England captain and nail down his spot.
Speaking from the club’s pre-season tour to Spain, he said: “From the first day we came in, we can all feel the buzz and it has been going ever since. I think we just want to keep working hard, get pre-season out of the way and then get ready to go.
“Of course it i s good having competition and I think we need two or three players in each position.
“It makes everyone work harder in training as you want to keep your place and, hopefully, start in the games when the season comes around.”
Of his new boss, he added: “He had an amazing career and was a top-class player.”