PROFIT & ROSS
Sunderland to offer red-hot ace Stewart bumper new deal to stop Ibrox switch
SUNDERLAND are ready to offer striker Ross Stewart a bumper new deal in a bid to fend off interest from Rangers and a host of English clubs.
The Black Cats’ top scorer has already pocketed an automatic rise after firing them back to the Championship.
That alerted Ross Wilson and Rangers’
IT TOOK Scott Wright almost three months to dial in to Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s way of thinking.
Now Greg Stewart reckons it is only a matter of time until the Rangers winger has Steve Clarke on the phone with a Scotland call-up.
The 24-year-old’s number looked to be up at one point last season as he failed to connect with his new gaffer’s methods.
The former Aberdeen kid was a regular feature during the early weeks of the Dutchman’s Ibrox reign, only for a dip in form and a failure to stay on message with tactical instructions to see him cut off from first-team duties.
Between kicking off against Livingston at the end of January and his next Premiership start at Motherwell in the second last week of April, Wright would tally just 254 minutes of action.
Ninety of those came alongside other fringe men against Annan in the Scottish Cup.
But by the end of the season, Wright had reconnected with the Dutchman and was trusted to fill in as an injury-hit side went the distance in Europe.
He started the Europa League Final and was one of the few men in blue to take the fight to Eintracht Frankfurt in the first half as Rangers sweltered in sizzling Seville before agonisingly losing out on penalties.
And it was his crisp, low drive that wiped away concerns of a barren season as he put the seal
on Scottish Cup glory with a second against Hearts at Hampden.
It’s those displays that former Ibrox ace Stewart reckons will see Wright force his way on to Clarke’s call sheet.
He told Record Sport: “If you do well for Rangers, you’re going to be looked at straight away for the Scotland team. That’s just what happens. If you play for Celtic or Rangers and you produce the goods consistently, it will only be a matter of time before you get that call to join the Scotland squad. Hopefully that happens for Scott.
“When Gio took over the team, he did struggle a wee bit at first. But by the end of the season he was a starter.
“As a player, the more appearances you can string together in a row, the more confidence you build.
“You start to develop a feelgood factor and a bit of belief that you can actually be a Rangers player and a guy the manager can depend on.
“Gio managed to give Scott that run of games and it showed in his performances. It paid off in the Cup Final against Hearts with his goal. Hopefully that’s the start of a big summer for Scotty and he can pick up again where he finished off at Hampden.”
Clarke was credited with a tactical masterstroke when he devised the 3-5-2 system which has managed to squeeze both Arsenal’s Kieran Tierney and Liverpool star Andy Robertson into the same Scotland line-up.
But with Tierney absent over the summer, the national side looked short on width and inspiration as their World Cup dreams crumbled against Ukraine before the Republic of Ireland dished out another depressing dunt in Dublin.
That is an issue Stewart believes Wright can solve.
Stewart, who worked with Clarke during his time at Kilmarnock, said: “Scotland obviously play with three at the
back to ensure they can fit both Kieran and Andy into the same line-up. Steve obviously thinks that system works so he sticks with it.
“But he might be thinking about a change after the last few results.
“And having someone like Scotty in there would give them another option when it comes to providing width higher up.
“But it’s up to Steve to decide if he changes it or not.”
For now, Wright will have to focus on retaining his Ibrox slot.
He could do with boosting his attacking stats if he’s to nail down a role as a Rangers regular.
He made 37 appearances last season but only 18 were starts.
In those circumstances, his count of seven goals and three assists isn’t so bad.
However, Stewart – preparing for his second season in India after joining Mumbai City – expects more from his former Aberdeen team-mate.
He added: “The goal at Hampden will have made Scott feel even better. He started in the
Europa League Final too, so that shows the manager has got a lot of confidence in him.
“Now he needs to think about contributing more with goals and assists. That’s what you need to have as a forward player for Rangers. That’s your job.
“But I’m looking forward to seeing how he gets on this season. I’ve known Scott a wee while. He went on loan to Dundee for a few months when I joined Aberdeen on loan in 2017.
“But I played with him for a few months when I went back in 2019 on another loan.
“To be fair to him, he was still very young at that time. Aberdeen are a good club so to be playing first-team football up there when you’re still a teenager, having to deal with the expectations their fans have, will only make you a better player.
“He’s taken that next step up by joining
Rangers and, of course, it will take time to adjust and build on your performances. “When I was still at Rangers, he joined in the January and right away he started doing a lot of stuff in the gym to try to build himself up. “You can see now that he’s filled out a wee bit but he’s not done yet. “He’s still young and has a lot of time on his side to improve and become a really good player for Rangers.”