£4m Rangers star earns 'hard to imagine' verdict down south as Gers look to free up wage bill
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Ben Davies is probably the prime example of what many people believe has gone wrong at Rangers over the last three seasons.
Rangers agreed a £4m deal to sign Ben Davies from Liverpool in the summer of 2022 but between injuries and a lack of consistency, the defender has struggled to ever repay the fee.
There are major questions about how the Ibrox side spent the millions recouped through the Europa League Final run, Champions League qualification and several high profile player sales.
But as Rangers look to finally cut their losses and shave millions off the wage bill, Ben Davies is making a big impression on loan at Birmingham City.
Ben Davies impressing for Birmingham City
Rangers breathed a sigh of relief when Ben Davies agreed a late loan deal to move to League One Birmingham City at the end of the summer transfer window.
That deal has freed up wages at Ibrox and contributed to the club decreasing the wage bill by an impressive £6m come the start of the 24/25 season.
According to Salary Sport, Davies was one of the highest paid players in Scottish football, earning £27k or around £1.4m per season despite failing to deliver on the minimum expectations at Ibrox.
As Rangers take a new direction in the transfer market, it's imperative to get the likes of Ben Davies off the wage bill permanently and the defender is beginning to shine at St Andrews.
Given a glowing review by the Birmingham Mail following the 1-0 win over Exeter, the outlet awarded Davies the Man of the Match in the game.
Claiming that 'such has been his defensive contribution' in recent months, 'it is hard to imagine a Blues lineup without Davies in it'.
The comments are backed up FotMob, who awarded Davies a 7.5 rating for his performance v Exeter.
The centre-back boasted a pass accuracy of 87% in the game and won 7/11 duels, including 50% of those in the air.
Ben Davies has made 22 appearances for Birmingham this season, starting nine of the last ten League One games for the English third flight's league leaders.
Rangers look to cut over £4.5m from wage bill
Rangers will hope to shift Ben Davies off the club's wage bill as Philippe Clement looks to rebuild the club's squad in his youthful Ibrox vision.
But the 29-year-old centre-back isn't the only English Championship struggler that Rangers are looking to shift between now and the summer transfer window.
Under the sporting directorship of Ross Wilson and then management of Michael Beale, Rangers bulked out their squad with overrated players from south of the border who have struggled with the weight of expectation at Ibrox.
The now Nottingham Forest director also signed some of these players on big contracts which have hamstrung Rangers in the transfer market.
Kieran Dowell and Rabbi Matondo have since been told they can leave Ibrox and earn around £2m between them per season to contribute very little.
Tom Lawrence has also been linked to Besiktas this January with the Welsh international earning a reported £22k per week or over £1.1m per season.
If Rangers can get rid of Ben Davies, Kieran Dowell, Rabbi Matondo and Tom Lawrence permanently, it will free up north of £4.5m from the wage bill.
This can then be spent on young talents who can properly compete in the Scottish Premiership and bank the club a fortune in future sales.
