IBROX RECRUITS WILL BEAR FRUIT
Beale’s new signings have had quiet start to life in the SPFL but Rangers boss is backing them to come good
RANGERS boss Michael Beale has mounted a stout defence of his summer recruitment, insisting his clutch of attacking signings will come good.
Forced into an overhaul following the summer departures of Alfredo Morelos, Ryan Kent and loanee Malik Tillman, Beale invested heavily in the transfer market, forking out around £10million to secure strikers Cyriel Dessers and Danilo.
Bought from Cremonese, Nigeria international Dessers has been selected regularly while searching for peak fitness, scoring twice in eight appearances. Danilo, a Dutch title winner with Feyenoord last term, has an identical record but has largely been utilised as a substitute.
Supporting players Sam Lammers and Abdallah Sima were also brought in but none of the four has yet made a compelling case to be a nailed-on starter.
Going into this afternoon’s first Old Firm derby of the season, the indications are that Beale will start Kemar Roofe, fit again and a scorer at Ross County last weekend.
Although the manager accepts there have been teething problems, he remains convinced that his recruitment will bear fruit.
He said: ‘In the last two league games, we’ve had six different goalscorers, so I don’t really see what everyone else sees.
‘We’re looking for players to build relationships and get used to our style of football. The leagues they come from are different. You don’t just click your finger and, because someone has played in Serie A, it’ll work in Scotland.
‘They’ve got to find their way. If you look at the names we lost in the summer, we don’t even have a reference point of a partnership from last season.
‘Even Rabbi (Matondo) and Kemar, who scored for us last week, didn’t really play last year.
‘So in the final third we’re trying to put things together. Sima has scored a couple, Dani has scored a couple, Sam got our first goal of the season, Dessers has a couple plus assists.’
The return of Roofe has provided a timely, if not unexpected, boost for Beale (right). Injured for much of his time in Scotland, the 30-yearold Jamaica internationalist underwent hip surgery last season and claims to be pain-free as he builds up his match sharpness.
Signed from Anderlecht for £4m in 2020, Roofe made a significant contribution to the team’s title-winning campaign in his first year and Beale hopes he can get back to the same levels this term.
‘Kemar’s goals per game ratio is up there with anyone’s in the Premiership currently,’ continued Beale. ‘He doesn’t have to play as a main striker, he can play alongside one like he did with Alfredo.
‘He did it last week with Cyriel and scored a goal probably only Kemar could score in our squad. ‘He and Tom Lawrence were signed by the club as starters but haven’t been able to do that for myself or Gio.’
Also missing for much of Beale’s tenure has been midfielder Lawrence, signed by Giovanni van Bronckhorst last year, yet injured in the first month of last season. Lawrence made his first competitive appearance in a year in Dingwall last weekend and Beale views both the Welshman and Roofe as de facto new signings.
‘It looks like Lawrence will be right there after the break,’ he continued. ‘It’s been frustrating waiting on these guys but they have the sort of quality that you wait for.
‘I think we’ve got two excellent players who will change the dynamics of the team.
‘Overall, our squad is in a better place, it just has to come together a little bit. That’s just time, it doesn’t happen in a click of the fingers.’
Beale’s new recruits were not able to gel in time to propel the club through the two-legged Champions League play-off against PSV Eindhoven.
Following a 7-3 aggregate defeat, Rangers are now preparing for a Europa League campaign alongside Real Betis, Aris Limassol and Sparta Prague in Group C.
Beale added: ‘You have to focus on the plan you’ve got because you won’t always meet the expectations. We can’t spend the millions and buy the “now” players. We have to build.
‘We expect domestically to compete for every trophy. What we wanted was to be in the Champions League and punch above our weight against the best in the world.
‘But every now and then you have a sobering result. In Europe, Wednesday night was the first one I’ve experienced that was a big disappointment in terms of the gulf in level between the two teams.’