Jack raid would be a double whammy
SAYS MARK HATELEY
GAINING a player, or maybe two, who fit the bill while depleting one of your major rivals at the same time? Put like that, Mark Hateley can’t question the wisdom of Pedro Caixinha casting a covetous eye towards Aberdeen.
Caixinha’s admiring assessment of soon to be out-ofcontract Ryan Jack helped turn up the tension ahead of Wednesday’s 2-1 win for the Dons. Before respect became the issue in the latest war of words with Derek McInnes, it was Jack’s future in the spotlight.
McInnes insisted his captain has spoken of looking towards England as his next destination. Caixinha’s words suggested, however, that Rangers will seek to ensure he heads no further south than Govan.
The Portuguese has also been credited with an interest in Dons midfielder Kenny McLean, outstanding in Aberdeen’s first Ibrox triumph in almost 26 years. The 25-year-old still has 12 months left on his deal in the north east. What price now given the bad blood that has brewed between the two managers?
Hateley would argue, however, that money invested in this type of target would be wisely spent.
Keen to see a Scottish core forming part of Caixinha’s overhaul, the Ibrox icon considers weakening Aberdeen as a bonus in Rangers’ quest to get closer to Celtic.
‘If you are looking historically, big teams don’t always sell to the other ones who are trying to attain the same sort of success,’ said Hateley.
‘Whether it is Manchester United selling to Arsenal or Tottenham selling to Arsenal, it is usually unheard of. But at the end of the day money talks. If you can do it, you do it. Absolutely.
‘I don’t think it is so much about player to player, I don’t think that is a problem anymore, it is more about club to club.
‘Ryan had a big injury a couple of years back and was out for a while, but I have seen him three or four times with Aberdeen. He’s a good player. He definitely stands out. He creates, too, and that’s why Aberdeen are where they are.
‘I think local Scottish players are where Rangers should be looking. If you look back through time, Rangers have always been identified with local, homegrown players within the foreign influx that came during that period.
‘It’s always good to have the nucleus of Scottish players within the group here. I would imagine with the contacts Pedro has, there will be a lot of European influences coming to this club within the summer, hopefully of a good standard, with a good mental strength.’
A solid mentality is a pre-requisite when it comes to trading Pittodrie for Ibrox. Hateley is as well acquainted as anyone with the bitterness of this particular rivalry.
Scorer of two famous goals that denied Aberdeen in the 1991 title decider, the Englishman was a player Dons fans loved to revile. So much so, in fact, that his image infamously featured in the urinal of one rather tasteless pub toilet in the Granite City — with the clientele urged to take aim.
‘If you are a good player and you can make that step and the supporters appreciate good players,’ insisted Hateley, speaking at a Show Racism the Red Card event at Ibrox. ‘That’s the end of it.
‘If you can come here and play well, then it doesn’t matter who you played with. Kenny Miller gets all the admiration he deserves, so that stuff is all by the by, whether it is Aberdeen or Celtic. Or anyone really.
‘If you are a good player and you can come and play in this environment week on week then the fans will take to you.
‘All the better players get stick and you use that as fuel. The more I used to get booed, the better I used to play, the harder I used to try, the further the sleeves used to get rolled up, the harder the tackles used to come. That mentality is what I am talking about — you have to have that.
‘I’ve seen some worldclass players come to Rangers and crash and burn. It’s all about being able to handle games.
‘Every game is a big game at Rangers. Every game is a cup final and it’s about dealing with that. Physically, it’s not a problem. It is the mental side of it.’
Hateley knows Caixinha will have already established an absence of that iron will within his existing squad. In truth, such a discovery would hardly require the skills of a behavioural psychologist.
Asked if the target for next season should be to get ahead of Aberdeen, Hateley added: ‘It’s always about doing the best you can. You have to bring characters in who can deal with that pressure of trying to win every game and that’s what Pedro would have seen by now after the assessment of his players.
‘He will have learned a lot from the (5-1) Old Firm game. The mentality and the aftermath of that game. He has seen now what you need to see. He came here knowing it was a big club, but the demands on the players here are second to none.
‘And that’s what he will be hopefully bringing to the club in the summer.
‘Aberdeen have a settled squad and that has helped with continuity. Derek’s team have got stronger than it was last year. They have had a nice understanding between the players. ‘At Rangers, there has been a lot of chop and change, which hasn’t been ideal and I think there will be changes again during the summer.
‘There’s a lot to be said about trying to keep a team together when things settle down. ‘Hopefully, Rangers will follow that and bring a period of stability now with the manager.’