Rangers must regret Bosman transfer faux pas after player they were urged to sign makes international debut
03/21/2025 09:30 AM
The list of players that Rangers have been linked with is always a lengthy one, even if most of the names aren't true.
Nils Koppen's Scottish transfer policy has only just started with Connor Barron and Lyall Cameron the first local talents to arrive.
It has always been a sore point swing former Auchenhowie kid Lewis Ferguson thriving in Serie A, but he isn't the only Scot abroad who Rangers missed out on.
The international break can be a dull affair even with 11 Rangers players on duty around the globe, however, Scotland's win over Greece has shown what might have been.
Max Johnston was linked with Rangers in 2023, instead, he moved to Sturm Graz in a bargain deal as his contract ticked down, now, he is a full Scotland international.
Rangers were warned not to miss out on Max Johnston
There was always a feeling that missing out on Johnston – who is the son of former Rangers winger Allan – would be costly.
Tall, athletic and comfortable on the ball, the former Motherwell right-back looked an assured talent.
Annoyingly, ever Rangers fan could see that Johnston was only going to get better, including Heart and Hand's David Edgar:
"He's a player I like a lot, very impressed every time I've seen him. He is one I think, we need Scottish players, we should be looking at but of course the problem is Tav – who plays in that position," said Edgar at the time of the speculation.
"There's nothing wrong with a bit of competition and a bit of future proofing but I suppose it then comes back to is it a key priority area for us this summer?
"And I do understand that argument but I just think this is a boy that we might look at, if you look at (Aaron) Hickey, he's away down south now after going to Italy, is it going to be one we look at in two to three years going 'we had the chance there and we never took it'."
New Rangers model should see Johnston mistake avoided
Dujon Sterling was signed in the summer of 2023 and has shown how good a player he is, but Johnston's progress shows why Scottish players shouldn't be ignored.
It is also an example of why players should be bough by the club and not on the whim of whoever is the Rangers manager.
Scotland isn't the type of footballing country that produces masses of players capable of enduring the physicality of the domestic game whilst also being able to be rise to the challenge of European football.
Johnston was one of them, but because Rangers were a shambles off the pitch, had no sporting director and allowed Michael Beale to run recruitment, they missed out on a player who could be a regular international for the next 10 years for a six-figure fee.
