Times Talker: Should Rangers look at home or abroad for signings in January?

British is best, writes Gary Keown

FRANK McPARLAND, the new Head of Recruitment, said it himself.

There is no scouting network at Rangers. There is no range of representatives scattered across all continents. There is the intention to re-establish that kind of information set-up in time, but it is still some way away yet.

Therefore, for the foreseeable future, it is best for the management at Ibrox to stick to what they know and concentrate on the British market. Certainly, in this coming window, the few signings to be made will certainly come from the United Kingdom.

Mark Warburton, David Weir and McParland know the scene in England well. They have plenty of reliable contacts. They can carry out their factfinding exercises on players, check up on their characters, see them live and make informed decisions by focusing on these shores.

By the looks of things, there is not an awful lot of money to play with at the Ladbrokes Championship club. Warburton often talks about the need to find value in signings. This is no time for gambles on foreign talent, no time for diving in headfirst on the say-so of agents, no time for making judgements on players based on video footage alone.

So far, concentrating on the British market has worked relatively well. Martyn Waghorn and James Tavernier came north from Wigan Athletic for around £500,000 and have been successful. Both have taken to Scottish football like ducks to water. Even now, both could almost certainly be traded on for a profit.

Warburton has strong contacts at a number of major clubs in England and will be able to utilise the loan system too, as witnessed through the arrival of Nathan Oduwa from Tottenham.

The Rangers manager is not blind to the Scottish market either, though. Far from it. The club were alert and ready to move when Danny Wilson was coming out of contract at Hearts. They were aware of Jason Holt’s situation as he prepared to leave Tynecastle. They tried to take Scott Allan from Hibernian only to lose out to a superior offer from Celtic.

Signing good Scottish players, however, is a tricky business. Transfer fees generally rise when the Old Firm come on the scene and Rangers cannot compete with clubs from the English Championship, which has become a second home for Scottish players in recent years.

Rangers’ best chance of signing players from up here rests in catching them as they move towards the end of their current deals and agreeing pre-contracts or negotiating knockdown transfer fees. Then, the player has to want to play for Rangers rather than earning more at Ipswich Town or Burnley.

The British market can – and will – work for Rangers, though. That is where their focus must be for the moment.

Shop around England and Europe, says Chris Jack

MARK WARBURTON shopped in the market he knew best over the summer as the majority of his signings came from south of the border and the likes of James Tavernier and Martyn Waghorn have made an impressive impact so far.

He snapped up two of the best Scottish players that were available by bringing in Danny Wilson and Jason Holt from Hearts and there is an advantage to signing in players who have experience of our game.

But he is likely to have to cast his net further once again as he looks to bolster his ranks during the January transfer window and then in the summer for what he hopes will be a shot at the Premiership title.

The Ibrox boss, alongside assistant David Weir and Head of Recruitment Frank McParland, will have a considerable list of targets that will include players at home and abroad.

There are few that would be available in Scotland that would make the kind of impact Rangers need them to next term, though. There appears little value for money in our market right now.

So it is likely that Rangers will once again look to the lower leagues in England for permanent deals and attempt to lure the brightest young talents from Premier League clubs to Ibrox on loan.

The lack of a scouting network may hinder their progress into the European market at present but it is one that could prove profitable for Rangers going forward and it would not be a surprise to see players from further afield arriving in Glasgow, if not in January, then next summer.

Warburton is realistic enough to know that any gems he can uncover will quickly appear on the radar of clubs in England should they impress at Ibrox. If that happens, it is a vindication that his recruitment was right in the first place.

But the model is one that works, and one that can be profitable on the pitch and in the balance sheet. It is one that Rangers will surely adopt at one stage. With McParland in place, the network of contacts across the game will continue to grow.

In January, Warburton is likely to stick to what he knows and the couple of players that are brought to Rangers probably won’t have to travel too far to get here. That shouldn't discount players from the continent, though.

Rangers should become a more attractive opposition for young foreign players again as they continue on the road to recovery and the Light Blues could reap the rewards of giving them a chance to shine.