Rangers Opinion: Gers should go all out to strike a deal for Andre Gray in the summer
According to The Herald, Rangers are considering an approach to sign Watford striker Andre Gray on loan in the summer, as the Gers begin preparing for life without Colombian hitman Alfredo Morelos.
The Herald also claims that Morelos, who has been a key source of goals for Rangers this season, has attracted interest from a number of top clubs in Europe and he might head for the exit door at Ibrox come the end of the season.
Gray’s name has come up as a viable alternative to the Colombian and the Gers might go forward with the move if they feel that the stumbling block of wages can be overcome, though the potential sale of Morelos is likely to provide Steven Gerrard with a handsome pool of cash to work with.
Gerrard has already started planning for the next season, as evident from the acquisition of Jake Hastie and Jordan Jones on pre-contract deals from Motherwell and Kilmarnock respectively.
While those signings will certainly help their cause, the Gers should make it a priority to invest in an out-and-out striker in a bid to add more firepower to their attack and give themselves a better chance of competing with Celtic for the Scottish Premiership title.
Gray, who joined Watford from Burnley back in 2017 for a club-record fee of £18 million, scored only 5 times for the Hornets last season but he has bettered those numbers in the current campaign, scoring 9 goals from 31 appearances in all competitions.
The 27-year-old has hit top gear towards the end of the ongoing season, scoring in successive Premier League games against Southampton and Wolves.
To put things into perspective, Rangers completing a raid on Watford for Andre Gray would be a masterstroke by Gerrard and it is not difficult to see why the Gers would relish getting their hands on the Englishman this summer. They clearly need that X-factor in their attack to outclass Celtic in the title race, and someone like Gray, who has the reputation of being a proven source of goals and assists in the EFL Championship, can certainly work wonders at Ibrox.
Gray shone in the Championship for Burnley and Brentford before successfully making the step up to the Premier League. Agreed, his exploits in the top-flight haven’t been too eye-catching but playing in the Scottish Premiership in one of the two big clubs should see him rack up a handsome tally of goals and assists.
It is a no-brainer that the Gers cannot rely on the 36-year-old Bournemouth loanee Jermain Defoe to deliver silverware, while Kyle Lafferty is likely to slip down the pecking order following his lean patch in front of goal this season. Gray, on the other hand, is very much in his prime and has all the attributes to slot straight into Gerrard’s first-team.
A fast, agile and athletic striker, Gray is capable of scoring with both feet and head and also contributes a lot with his work rate off the ball. He always seems to have a few tricks up his sleeve, be it outsmarting the defenders with his subtle movement or making an impact with his instinctive presence inside the box.
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Gray is a proven player in English football, and although he would only be a one-season fix at Ibrox, Rangers should not hesitate to strike a loan deal for him. Rangers probably don’t have the financial resources to strike a permanent deal for the striker and it remains to be seen whether the Hornets would be prepared to let Gray leave on loan.
