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Liverpool currently sit seven points outside the top four back in seventh place in the league table, but with the club’s domestic form fluctuating so much this season, it seems as if the goalposts have been continually moved by manager Brendan Rodgers to the point that it’s difficult to quite know what the minimum expectations surrounding the team are now this term and whereabouts they hope to finish.

It goes without saying that the side want to finish as highly as possible in the Premier League and being seven points adrift of Tottenham is not an insurmountable lead by any stretch of the imagination, but after Rodgers claimed earlier in the campaign that replicating the eight-placed finish under predecessor Kenny Dalglish would be a ‘magnificent achievement’, the 40-year-old appears to have bought too much into the hype surrounding the side in recent months.

It’s still worth noting that Liverpool haven’t beaten a club inside the top ten in the league all season, which hardly seems conducive to a top four finish and if the shock FA Cup defeat away at Oldham taught us anything, it’s that while the starting XI has been in superb form in recent weeks, that the support cast isn’t quite up to the standard required just yet. Doubts also remain over the club’s ability to deal with physical opposition, while Rodgers has developed a worrying tendency to get his starting eleven wrong in games of importance.

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On November 30th, with the side set to host Southampton at Anfield, they sat closer to the relegation zone than the top four, with four points separating them from Nigel Adkins’ third-bottom team and a 10-point gap from fourth-placed West Bromwich Albion in fourth, but Rodgers sounded optimistic when pushed if the club could still finish in the top four: “It is realistic, absolutely. Teams are taking points off each other. Let’s be honest, it is a big ask, a massive ask, but that has to be our target. We are going to look to try and get as close to that as we possibly can.”

Fast forward to December 14th and perhaps Rodgers’ most ill-judged rhetoric during his time in charge reared its ugly head when he stated at a press conference just before the humiliating 3-1 defeat to a struggling and subsequently woeful Aston Villa side: “We lie four points off the top four. For me the ambition is to grow higher. We are 11 points off second and that can all turn around very quickly. You need to get consistency – and that is what we have at the minute.”

However, in recent weeks he’s sought to play down expectations by labelling a top four finish on the eve of the game away at Arsenal as ‘difficult’ and it seems that nobody quite knows, not least of all the manager himself, quite what the target in the league is for Liverpool this season. Confused yet? You should be.

What is clear, though, is that this is a campaign of transition and expectations have been dampened to such an extent by Rodgers in the summer that a general consensus has been reached by a fanbase willing to be patient with the new man at the helm, that just so long as they finish eighth or higher, then they will be satisfied with the progress that the club are making both on and off the pitch.

Lest we forget, this is a young squad, with several new signings in key positions which have increasingly come to rely on both Luis Suarez and captain Steven Gerrard in recent months. This is not a fully formed outfit by any means and they are still getting to grips with Rodgers’ methods and style of play, while in terms of depth, they come up short compared to many of their rivals.

In that sense, Rodgers is fortunate to have taken over the club at a time when the supporters are tired of false promises and the quick rate of managerial turnover and are willing to place their faith in a new ‘project’ and ‘philosophy’, craving stability above all else. Nevertheless, Rodgers seems to have a troubling tendency to keep the media on side and in the loop with regards to his thinking and decision-making almost at every turn.

Of course, being media-friendly is all part and parcel of the game these days and having a poor relationship with them can only make your job all the more difficult, as countless managers have found to their cost in the past, but Rodgers seems to want to create news where none really exists. He’s not the first manager to contradict himself within a matter of weeks, but Liverpool fans seem to be straddling that line now between whether to continue to dampen down expectations or dare to dream of something more and a consistent party line above all else is what’s required.

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With a tough run of fixtures in the pipeline, including Arsenal and Manchester City away from home not to mention the tricky test of Zenit St. Petersburg in Russia in the Europa League, now is not the time to be getting carried away by what has been some good form against opposition you’d expect them to do well against.

The challenges ahead are huge and whether they finish sixth, seventh or eighth, splitting hairs in such a fashion really takes away from what the larger objective in mind is, restoring Liverpool to the top four in a matter of seasons, not months and Rodgers would do well to remember that.

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Premier League managers are always keen to secure new arrivals in their squad, regularly entering the transfer market for the next big thing. With home-grown status becoming more and more craved, due to new squad quota rulings, the prices of English talent has inflated drastically.

Foreign imports have always been much craved in the Premier League, yet the passion and commitment of British stars has always formed the backbone of the set-up.

Due to their increasing price tags, many English players have have struggled with the burden of high hopes weighing heavily on their shoulders. The media often pounce on failure, with a desire to find stories to fill column inches, ramping up the pressure on players still adjusting to new surroundings.

This list looks at 15 victims of the inflated fees associated with English talent.

Click on the Liverpool duo below to see 15 victims of inflated fees

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I wonder if Andre Villas-Boas has a framed screenshot of the Premier League table hanging in his office? Having amassed 40 points from 22 games, Tottenham sit just two points behind the Champions of Europe, with a six-point gap ahead of fierce rivals Arsenal. The club may not be hailed as the outside ‘title challengers’ they were this time last season, but they are arguably in a better shape to regain entry into the Champions League.

The arrival of Villas-Boas caught many by surprise and evoked an uneasy reaction from supporters still holding a candle for Harry Redknapp. The national press were quick to voice their concerns, seemingly eager to ignite another tabloid friendly disaster that was frequent column filler last year.

However, despite some early teething problems stemming from obscure tactical decisions, Villas-Boas can now rest assured that his feet are firmly under one of English football’s most prominent tables. Only league leaders Manchester United better the impressive tally of 22 goals away from home and while a few more net-busters at the Lane would be welcomed, the team is slowly shaking free their negative persona.

As results improved on the pitch, the tabloids were running out of ammo and so turned their attention to his unique brand of vocal mannerisms. A piece in the Daily Mail portrayed Villas-Boas as a Mr Bean type character stuck in a Carry On film and revelled in the fact the 35-year-old failed to land the Burnley job in 2010, after sending in a lengthy and confusing application.

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‘Tommy Docherty used to say he never said anything to his players his milkman wouldn’t understand,’ said the Claret’s chief executive Paul Fletcher.

‘I don’t think any milkman would fathom the meaning of a lot of Andre’s presentation.’ (Daily Mail)

It seems as though a short-sighted few are still longing for the beautiful game that was built on blood, sweat and tears. They fail to realise that football has evolved, it now thrives upon newfound intelligence which sees managers treasure patient build-up play rather than long ball bombardment.

The detailed preparation process can no longer be ignored or deemed insignificant, especially when tactics need to be repeatedly adjusted to triumph over each new opponent. The modern player needs inspiring beyond the cliched ‘go out there and enjoy yourself’ speech and Villas-Boas is someone perfectly capable of providing just that.

In many ways Harry Redknapp is still the media’s darling, a graduate from the old school of coaching who prefers warriors to artists. His “you’d have to be a dope to mess up the Chelsea job” comment screamed petulance and portrayed an annoyance at being replaced by this new breed of intellectual coach. His tactics in the game against Spurs highlighted just how afraid he was of his former side, but of course the media spun such a performance as a positive, despite the fact QPR were at home and should have been relentlessly pursuing victory.

In Portugal there is an altogether different perception of the manager they believe will one day take charge of the national team. Villas-Boas is widely renowned as an articulate and elegant communicator, even current Porto boss Vítor Pereira revealed he was jealous of his predecessors media skills.

Villas-Boas does however fail to appreciate context and instead persists with translating his thoughts from Portuguese to English in a literal format. His remark that Jermain Defoe can “smell” crosses was not a reference to his special nasal powers but instead the striker’s good anticipation and awareness off the ball. But that isn’t half as funny and certainly won’t look as good strapped across a newspaper headline.

Yet his current crop of players seem to understand him perfectly and now play with a natural sense of rhythm and balance that was missing last season. Unlike Roman Abramovich, Daniel Levy will not loom, pry or demand instant success. There is a reassuring sense of security in their relationship, although this would be officially confirmed if Levy could bring in an identifiably ‘Villas-Boas’ signing like Joao Moutinho or Willian.

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There is also a strong sense that he is learning from his previous errors of misjudgement and not just because he’s finally admitted to making them at Chelsea. He has been less ruthless in his changes and has even allowed Michael Dawson back into contention after reported exile. The defensive frailty of Spurs in the latter stages of games has also been rectified, as the club haven’t conceded late on since that last gasp defeat to Everton. In fact, they’ve only let in two goals in their last eight games.

Whereas Arsenal fans are growing tired of Wenger’s methodical approach, loyal Lilywhites seem perfectly content with their own professor. There is a growing consensus that young, dedicated tacticians will be the future template of all successful managers in the Premier League.

Southampton certainly think so – having today appointed 40-year-old “astute tactician” Mauricio Pochettino – it’s just a shame that such a decision has come at the expense of yet another English manager.

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Tottenham are a team who of late seem to find themselves perpetually on the cusp of something quite special. The club have a frustrating ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, leading many to brand them the great underachievers of our game. But can a return to the two-tier management structure allow the North London club to fulfil their Premier League potential next term?

The appointment of Franco Baldini to the post of Technical Director has been a cause for major optimism among many fans.  A move towards a continental structure of management, as favoured by Levy and Villas-Boas, could see a summer of change at White Hart Lane. With responsibility for player recruitment at both youth and senior levels, the appointment takes the strain away from both Chairman and Head Coach. Levy outlined the role of the new director when speaking to the clubs website:

“Franco is extremely well respected in the industry, possessing an extensive knowledge of players around the world.”

“He will strengthen our football management team, particularly in the field of recruitment, working closely with Andre Villas-Boas and Tim Sherwood across all levels on the playing side.”

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Baldini is famed for a particular focus on youth recruitment; the signing of 19-year-old Marquinhos for Roma last year typifies this. However, I believe Baldini must shorten his horizons with Spurs next season to take advantage of the opportunities 2013/14 could bring to the club. With many of the top clubs going through a phase of rebuilding and regime change, there is the potential for a club with relative stability to cease on this and break through. Now I realise Villas-Boas has had only a year in charge, but in footballing terms he isn’t far off creating a dynasty. With the red half of North London showing the continued lack of ambition that has plagued their club of late, can Baldini seize this opportunity?

Advocating wholesale changes to what is already a talent rich squad is totally nonsensical. Instead Baldini needs to act early in capturing a couple of key signing to push the club forward. Acting early doesn’t mean rashly and it is likely that both Baldini and Villas-Boas have already done a lot of the groundwork behind the scenes. The advantage to Spurs over their rivals is that new management invariably means upheaval. Couple a new way of playing, backroom staff and potential signings and you can truly comprehend how hard it will be for the top clubs to gel together their squads at the start of the year. Contrast this to Spurs who will have much the same coaching styles from last year and hopefully much of the same squad and although it seems odd, the sure footing Spurs are on actually heightens the pressure on Baldini as he seeks to capitalise.

There is already evidence that Baldini will have no such time to bed in this summer. Historically Spurs have done their business late, often to the detriment of early season form. The capture of Paulinho early this month signals a total change in tact, and something completely alien to those familiar with the behaviour of Levy during preceding windows. I don’t think you can doubt the ability of the Selecao midfielder, but personally this deal was an oddity. On the list of areas in need of strengthening, most would have placed a left back and striker much higher. One can discern from this that there are indeed further large-scale moves in the pipeline, or that Villas-Boas has developed something of a liking for a certain Togolese frontman. For the sake of Spurs I really hope and genuinely believe the former is more likely.

While I believe Spurs will have an active summer under Baldini, it is still important to maintain a degree of patience. It seems commonplace to assume that a transfer composes of emailing across a bid, meeting up for a drink to discuss terms and then slapping the confirmation on the club’s website. Spurs, like many clubs, are meticulous in their transfer dealings, with Villas-Boas reported to have gone on a South American scouting sabbatical during his unemployment. The Paulinho deal was clearly not something Levy dreamt up in the pub, but because it was not reported heavily in the lead up to the deal it was considered by some quarters a quickly thrashed out deal. Brad Friedel actually mentioned the degrees to which a club like Spurs go to when conducting business while hosting a show on TalkSport. He indirectly tried to allay the constant fear that Levy spends much of a transfer window on a sunbed somewhere in the Caribbean, until someone kindly reminds him in late August that he has a club to run.

If Spurs had the funds to bring in Paulinho then they could surely afford Damiao. The debacle, which has seemed endless, fuelled much of fans’ hatred towards Spurs’ transfer policy. I don’t confess to knowing a lot more about the guy than the average punter, but I am sure that in any case, months of intense scouting by experts outweighs a couple of YouTube clips.

So while this is the most crucial of windows, I expect Spurs to take a well thought out pragmatic approach to the transfer market. Needless to say I expect most Spurs fans would want to avoid the second coming of Darren Bent.

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Will this transfer window finally turn Spurs into title contenders?

Join the debate below!

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Tottenham are still interested in appointing Franco Baldini as their new Director of Football despite previously rejecting links between himself and the club.

The role has been available since chief scout Ian Broomfield was sacked by Daniel Levy two weeks ago.

Baldini has been Director General at Roma since his appointment in 2011, however it is believed his position at the club is insecure after La Maggica’s poor start to the season, lying tenth in Serie A, leading to rumours the Italian may resign.

Last week however, the former assistant to Fabio Capello committed his future to his club, stating: “I have an obligation over here with Roma. It is a long project which I am committed to.”

Andre Villas-Boas’ side have made a mixed start to the Premier League season and Jose Mourinho’s former assistant is still an admirer of the more continental club structure, making no secret of the fact that he would like a technical director brought in.

“I have worked with one at Porto and Academia and had no issues with that and I certainly promote that,” said the Spurs boss.

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It is rumoured that Daniel Levy is now looking at F.C. Porto’s Antero Henrique and former Barcelona sporting director Txiki Beguiristain as possibilities to fill the vacancy.

The in-vogue saying this season in the top flight is most definitely the term ‘transition’, but as Liverpool embark upon a deliberate change in tack under Brendan Rodgers, bumps in the road such as their slow start to the new Premier League season were to be expected, but what will the club’s latest boss have learnt so far from his charges?

To make matters simple, let’s start from the back and work our way through the side, beginning with goalkeeper Pepe Reina. The Spaniard should be comfortable with the ball-playing role that he’s been asked to perform, as it could be seen as fairly similar to the sweeper role he was given under Rafa Benitez during which he enjoyed his best spell of form at the club.

However, the 29-year-old’s dip in form has become a slump from which at the moment, there looks to be no return. With the club’s coffers being tightened, Reina remains an attractive saleable asset and without an upturn in form, Rodgers may want to follow up his initial interest in former Swansea goalkeeper Dorus De Vries again, or move for a more recognised stopper altogether next summer.

At centre-back, Martin Skrtel and Daniel Agger have both struggled initially with their new roles too. The 4-3-3 system is heavily reliant on the wingers hugging the touchline and the full-backs getting up and joining them in attack. This in turn should see the centre-back pairing be pushed further apart than they are normally comfortable with as they pass the ball between themselves, while also being in a position to cover the flanks.

You would presume that Agger would be familiar with this role given his skills and how Denmark like to play, but both he and Skrtel could be found guilty of committing some game-changing and result-defining individual errors against West Brom and Manchester City, with Skrtel’s pass back to Reina that gifted Carlos Tevez a late equaliser the best example. Jamie Carragher is still on the wane and Sebastian Coates still shaky on the rare occasions he does start, but even during a period of adjustment, they’ve underperformed hugely in what on paper is one of the team’s strongest positions of strength and a platform of their good form in recent times.

The full-backs are a tad more promising, with Glen Johnson starting the season reasonably well, even if he was caught woefully out of position for Lukas Podolski’s goal against Arsenal. Martin Kelly could hardly be blamed for the Yaya Toure striker against City either which saw Reina flapping hopelessly at a Tevez cross before it bounced off the unlucky defender.

There’s still a worry whether they are good enough technically to play the roles that they are being asked to perform and whether the likes of Jose Enrique and Johnson are too wasteful on the ball. Stewart Downing’s conversion to a left-back role in an attempt to prolong his future at the club is an interesting development that could pay dividends further down the line, even if  it is somewhat humiliating for both the player and club at the same time in the short-term.

In midfield, Joe Allen has settled superbly into his new surroundings, while Jonjo Shelvey has been excellent whenever called upon so far. Lucas Leiva’s injury against City was extremely unfortunate but to be expected after such a long spell on the sidelines, with niggling muscle injuries sadly the norm in these cases, but it also robs the side of anyone capable of breaking up play in the middle of the park.

The club’s captain Steven Gerrard has been a big cause for concern so far and he looks as if he’s really struggling to get to grips with Rodgers’ methods. It’s not that he’s prone to trying the outrageous Hollywood passes like he used to, but that he seems positionally lost at sea, neither helping out either defensively or in an attacking sense and his form has been ropey and his passing very poor by his own standards.

Up front is where the main problems lie, though and the fact that Liverpool have scored just two goals from their opening three league games, with not one of them coming from open play, is a huge cause for concern. It’s worth remembering that Rodgers’ Swansea side failed to score on 15 separate occasions last term – the most in the league – and scored just 44 times altogether, so it may just be that this ethos is simply not conducive in English football to the free flowing of goals.

Luis Suarez has been at his profligate best , despite a corker of a free-kick against City and has been exceptionally poor on the ball, acting as a brake to any potential build-up play in all three fixtures so far. Borini has also struggled to involve himself enough and he looks a little lightweight on first inspection. The one ray of light has been the form of 17-year-old Raheem Sterling though, who was rewarded with his first senior call-up to the England side just the other day after breaking through into the starting eleven and displaying a maturity well beyond his years.

With so much changing both on and off the pitch in terms of the team’s style of play, the fresh faces and the swathe of departures, coupled with a tricky opening run of fixtures with Manchester United still to come on the horizon, a slow start was to be expected. It’s not that the pace of change has been too fast, because in these instances, dragging it out could do just as much if not more damage, but Rodgers has issues to overcome right throughout the side.

Would he have spent so much on both Assaidi and Borini is he knew he wouldn’t be able to find £6m for Clint Dempsey this summer? It’s extremely doubtful and the operational problems at the club are still getting in the way of progress, with Ian Ayre a big part of that, while FSG’s dithering is now bordering on the systemic. Their failures in the transfer market were a stark and harsh lesson in resource management which he will be hoping not to repeat in the future with the setting up of a technical committee at the club, while a recognised executive is reportedly being pursued to replace Ayre in the near future.

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His 4-3-3 system is reliant on the players right through the spine of the side performing, while those out wide add the sprinkling of panache to proceedings and only Joe Allen is in any sort of form at the moment, with Reina, Suarez, Skrtel and Gerrard all struggling. Andre Villas-Boas has proven at Chelsea and to a lesser extent at Tottenham, that sometimes players need longer than you might expect to learn a new system and teething problems are inevitable.

One of Rodgers’ greatest strengths is his belief in his own methods and he’ll need that this term, particularly after a terrible deadline day for the club which left them a striker light until January. He has a small and unbalanced squad at present, wrestling with a change in style and burdened by the financial failings of the previous managerial administration.

Change will not be easy, nor will it be solved overnight and when it comes to truly assessing his work, we may not fully know even by the end of the season. But one thing is for certain, restoring the club to the top six, let alone the top four over the course of the next two to three years is going to be an absolutely huge job and the side will continue to be unpredictably frustrating for the foreseeable future as they continue to get to grips with the changes being implemented by their new boss.

You can follow me on Twitter @JamesMcManus1

Scans on Manchester City defender Micah Richards have revealed that he may only miss up to two months with a knee injury.

At first the knock was believed to be a lot worse and Richards will see a specialist on Tuesday to decide whether or not surgery is going to be needed.

It was originally feared that the big City defender had damaged his ligaments and could have been a long term injury concern, but the area of cartilage between his knee and thigh bone looks better than first feared.

Reports on Monday suggested that the England defender has already undergone surgery but the club has come out saying that’s not the case and that the club’s medical staff were discussing the best course of action.

Richards might have to undergo keyhole surgery today at a Manchester hospital and that could keep him out for up to six to eight weeks.

The injury came in the club’s 1-0 win against Swansea and after collapsing in agony in the penalty box, the defender was stretchered off and given oxygen.

It was a painful blow to Richards who was only making his third appearance of the season after a number of setbacks. It’s the second injury he’s suffered this season – Richards also missed the opening to the season after injuring his ankle while playing for Great Britain at the Olympics.

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Manchester City are one of the fastest growing sporting teams over the past ten years and are still going from strength to strength. Ever since their move from Maine Road to the Etihad Stadium, the vision of the club to be considered one of the best in world has worked extremely well.

Like every City fan knows, being a Citizen was, and can still be, a rollercoaster ride. The phrase going ‘one step forward and two steps back’ was perfectly associated with the Sky Blues.

But now with two Premier League titles under their belt aswell as an FA Cup, Capital One Cup and FA Community Shield since Sheikh Mansour took over the Manchester club in 2009 things are looking rosy. Yet one key element missing for Manuel Pellegrini’s side is success in a European competition. However, good they are in the league, when it comes to playing their football across Europe, they seem to crumble.

Nevertheless, for Manchester City to be in the same calibre as the likes of Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich, a successful European campaign is fundamental for everyone associated with the club. Taking a minor step back in the Premier League could be the answer for them to finally lift their inaugural Champions League trophy. With the quality of players Pellegrini has, rotation in his team selection for both European and League matches is possible and it’s realistic enough to clinch the double this season.

Despite having their Champions League squad selection cut to 21 players due to breaching Financial Fair Play regulations, this could be City’s best chance of clinching their first Champions League title. This year has seen City spend less, but have still brought in important players. Willy Caballero, Eliaquim Mangala, Frank Lampard and Fernando have all been brought in to bolster their chances of more success after their tight title win last year. However, these three players have all played in the Europa League aswell as the Champions League for Malaga, Chelsea and FC Porto respectively. Their experience will be valuable when playing on a Tuesday or Wednesday night.

Last season’s Champions League campaign saw them dumped out in the last 16 against Spanish giants FC Barcelona. One little crumb of comfort for them was an impressive 3-2 away at Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena. In the 2012/2013 season, under the management of Roberto Mancini, they failed to get of the first phase and were winless in the ‘group of death’ that contained Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund and Ajax. After Tottenham Hotspur beat them to fourth spot in the 2012/2011 season, City went into the Europa League, and were dumped out in the last 16 by Dynamo Kiev.

Even before the cash flow started Manchester City’s dominance, in 2003 failed to reach the UEFA Cup group stages, losing a qualifier to Polish side Dyskobolia Grodzisk. It seems that when it comes to the European stage, City’s history has not been glorious and this year won’t be any easier with their group containing FC Bayern Munich, Russian side CSKA Moscow and Italian giants AS Roma. This is Manchester City’s time to show that they can cut it with the best and they have every chance of going all the way in the road to Berlin.

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With so many competitions each season not to mention the constant media pressure on both players and managers, is it realistic to expect a team to win it all? For a top club there is four competitions on the table, and when you factor in the not so small matter of internationals too, their players are on the go all the time – risking burn out not to mention injury to boot.

Of course there have been occasions where teams win it all – United did the treble in 1999 and Barcelona have done it more recently, but in reality it takes an awful lot and then a little bit more to win not only the title but the domestic cup and also the Champions League – not to mention a huge deal of luck with decisions and draws.

Players in the modern game have to contend with not only domestic fixtures but also the international tournaments that are on pretty much none stop – Juan Mata has not only played nearly all of Chelsea’s games, but gone to both the Euros and the Olympics to boot – meaning that the player has literally not stopped. This sadly is all too common for players these days and fatigue can play a huge part in deciding where trophies go in the latter part of the season.

Take the Champions League last season – both Barca and Real Madrid were majorly affected from the title deciding Clasico being smack bang in the middle of the Champion’s League semi-finals, with Madrid’s going into extra time and penalties to boot. It can often be forgotten that players are human and feel exhaustion and emotion like the rest of us – and in front of thousands of people every single week, not to mention the glare of the media spotlight.

A full season in the Premier League is 38 games, not to mention the added rigours of the other domestic competitions – it is no wonder that some managers will sacrifice the Carling Cup or even the FA Cup in pursuit of what they and everyone else sees as bigger glory – either domestically or in Europe.

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As we go into an international break this week, some players are able to rest or in Kaka’s case, train twice a day in order to get some first team football in the future, but others such as Ronaldo or Iniesta have to not only contend with traveling but the fixture – and a friendly or qualifier at that. Should such a player come back to their club injured it is entirely reasonable for the club to feel aggrieved – they are paying the wages after all, and with the amount of fixtures the club and players already face, a ridiculous friendly can seriously curtail the chase for trophies towards the latter end of the season. Winning it all? Possible, but highly unlikely.

As reported by The Sun, Rangers are keen on signing Jermain Defoe on loan this summer as Steven Gerrard looks to revitalise the Light Blues’ attack in the upcoming transfer window.

With Alfredo Morelos having a pretty good debut season at Ibrox, it’s not like Rangers are completely without options in the final third, but there are question marks about how clinical the Colombian is and his ability to perform in big matches after missing a number of chances against Celtic.

Defoe may be 35 years of age, but he’s scored 38 Premier League goals over the last three-and-a-half seasons and has quality and experience beyond almost everyone in the Rangers squad.

A former international teammate of Gerrard, is he the right kind of signing for the Gers this summer?

Fans certainly think so and are excited about the potential switch, even if they recognise it’s a long shot due to the wages he is likely earning at Bournemouth currently.

They took to Twitter this week to share their thoughts…

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