Rangers must axe £3m flop who has missed more games than Lawrence
Glasgow Rangers have appointed Kevin Thelwell as their new sporting director heading into the 2025/26 season and beyond.
Formerly of Wolverhampton Wanderers and Everton, the Englishman brings with him a wealth of experience to Ibrox.
He faces a tough job at the Light Blues, especially with the club about to finish trophyless for the second time in three seasons.
His main job will be to identify players who can improve the first-team squad. However, he must also move on those who aren’t contributing much anymore.
Tom Lawrence is earning decent money for a minimal contribution. Will he move on this summer?
Tom Lawrence must leave Rangers in the summer
The Welshman joined on a free transfer in the summer of 2022, and on the surface, it looked like a solid enough signing.
He managed only nine games before missing the rest of the season through injury, and this would be a common theme during his time at Ibrox.
Overall, the midfielder has missed over 60 matches due to injury issues sustained across his three seasons at the club.
Earning £22k-per-week for his troubles, Thelwell must move Lawrence on when the window opens and use this money more wisely.
|
Tom Lawrence’s Rangers statistics |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Season |
Games |
Goals |
Assists |
|
2024/25 |
25 |
6 |
2 |
|
2023/24 |
32 |
3 |
3 |
|
2022/23 |
9 |
3 |
2 |
|
Via Transfermarkt |
|||
There is another player, who is currently out on loan until the end of the season, who has spent more time on the sidelines than Lawrence.
Rabbi Matondo cost the Gers £3m three years ago, but it’s fair to say that he hasn’t quite lived up to this transfer fee.
Rabbi Matondo has spent more time on the sidelines than on the pitch
Like Lawrence, Matondo has been severely injury-prone since arriving in Glasgow. Indeed, he has missed 69 matches for the club in that time.
There have been a few moments of genius, notably his curling effort against Celtic in April 2024 or his excellent goal against PSV Eindhoven in August 2023. But overall, Matondo hasn’t performed how many expected.
Former Rangers striker Kris Boyd hailed the winger for having “blistering pace” after scoring his first goal against PSV, but this is arguably the only real trait going for him, given his lack of impact at the club throughout his time in Glasgow.
Eight goals and 11 assists registered across 67 matches isn’t bad, but it certainly isn’t worthwhile enough to keep him for the 2025/26 season because he has failed to deliver consistent quality as either a scorer or a creator of goals.
He joined German side Hannover 96 on a six-month loan deal towards the end of the winter transfer window and has scored once in ten appearances.
With just one more year left on his current contract, Thelwell will be hoping Hannover exercise their option to buy the winger for a reported fee of £2m, which would help the club’s finances.
Bringing the former Everton director in this early will allow him to survey the situation at Ibrox before the transfer window opens.
If he can get off to a decent start regarding potential signings and departures, the 51-year-old will bank some credit.
Moving on both Lawrence and Matondo should be top of his list of priorities, given how much time they have spent on the sidelines rather than contributing to any success on the pitch at Ibrox.
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