The January transfer window is now officially open for business and that means that Glasgow Rangers can make moves to improve their squad in the coming weeks.
Philippe Clement and Nils Koppen could look to bring players in to bolster the squad, with the Gers currently 14 points adrift in the Scottish Premiership but still having the Europa League and the SFA Cup to play for.
Oscar Cortes, Mohamed Diomande, and Fabio Silva were all brought in to Ibrox in the January transfer window in 2024, which shows that the Gers chiefs are prepared to be busy in the winter market.
However, Rangers could need to move on some players to create space in the squad for new additions, and Kieran Dowell is one dud who should be moved on.
Why Kieran Dowell should be moved on
Signed on a free transfer from Norwich City in the summer of 2023, the English attacking midfielder has failed to make his mark at Ibrox over the past 18 months.
The former Everton academy graduate only made 12 appearances, starting five of those games, in the Premiership last season, and contributed with two goals and two assists.
Dowell’s campaign was heavily disrupted by injuries because he missed a whopping 26 matches with two separate issues, that both kept him out for over 50 days.
So far this term, the 27-year-old dud has produced zero goals and zero assists in 11 Premiership outings, which illustrates how little the midfielder has contributed for Clement.
Therefore, the Belgian boss should bin the midfield flop, who has scored two league goals in 18 months at Ibrox, and use the January window to sign a replacement for him, with reported target Darius Olaru a potentially fantastic option.
Why Rangers should sign Darius Olaru
Rangers are reportedly keen on a deal to sign the Romania international, who has a £3.3m release clause in his contract with FCSB, and signing him would allow them to ditch Dowell from the squad in that position.
Olaru is an attacking midfielder whose form in the Romanian top-flight since the start of last season suggests that he would come in as a big upgrade on the Englishman, if he can translate those performances over to Scottish football.
The 26-year-old star, who was compared to Manchester City star Kevin de Bruyne for his quality as a scorer and a creator of goals by FCSB chief Mihai Stoica, has only missed six games through injury since the start of the 2021/22 campaign.
Appearances
36
16
Goals
15
8
Big chances created
19
6
Assists
5
3
Key passes per game
2.1
3.0
As you can see in the table above, Olaru has provided regular contributions of goals, assists, and ‘big chances’ created in the league since the start of last season, something that Dowell has been unable to do in his time at Ibrox.
These statistics suggest that the potential is there for the De Bruyne-esque star to come in and offer Clement more quality at the top end of the pitch than he has been getting from the former Norwich man, who should be ditched from the squad and replaced by the £3.3m-rated star.
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Olaru has the availability, as shown by his impressive fitness record, and the ability, as evidenced by his form in Romania, to be a far more valuable asset to the club than Dowell.