It is a summer of transition with players arriving from all over the footballing world with those deemed surplus to requirements allowed to leave.
Philippe Clement has a big job on his hand to rebuild a squad that was hanging by a thread when he inherited it.
Rangers need to put the failures of the past behind them but is the rumoured appointment of Jack Butland as captain might not be as good an idea as first seemed.
Jack Butland is the perfect choice to be Rangers captain
As yet, there has been no official announcement and James Tavernier and Connor Goldson have both been seen participating in pre-season testing at Auchenhowie, there has also been a caveat backtrack claiming that the current skipper will have to leave first.
With John Lundstram and Ryan Jack already away, Butland is the obvious replacement if there is a change at the top of the leadership group.
The 30-year old England international speaks well, is consistently one of Rangers best players and has an aura that commands respect.
He is also untarnished by years and years of failure.
Tavernier and Goldson, on the other hand, are the poster boys for the barren years since 2018 when only three trophies have been won.
Butland is a no-brainer to take the armband.
However…
Why Butland being made captain might not be a good idea
The International Football Association Board has brought in a law whereby only the captain of each respective team can speak to the referee.
They have clarified the law that has been implemented and is currently being trialed at the European Championships.
The lawmakers explaining why it is being brought in:
“Despite the expectations underpinning Law 5, decisions by referees and other match officials are regularly subjected to verbal and/or physical dissent and sometimes result in players running at the referee and surrounding or mobbing them.
“This behaviour shows a lack of respect for the referee, harms the image of the game and can be intimidating and upsetting. It is a common reason given by match officials for resigning. Action is needed to reduce such behaviour and to protect referees.
“Creating a captain-only zone will focus responsibility on the captain to encourage their team-mates to behave appropriately.
“The captain will be able to approach the referee but must take responsibility for helping ensure that their team-mates respect the captain-only zone.”
For once, it is a law that makes a lot of sense having been in rugby since time began, there is a downside to this though.
it would be a problem if the match official makes the captains only call for a potential penalty incident or red card offence with Butland at the other end of the pitch.
There is no caveats for goalkeepers who are captains either so it doesn’t look like a vice-captain playing outfield can fulfill the role.
Not having a player capable of speaking to the referee throughout the game and in stoppages of play is a small detail that could make a difference.
The SFA have yet to confirm if it is to be brought in for the SPFL, but it would make sense given how easy it is for referees and the initial success at the European Championships.
The SFA rarely makes decisions based on what many suggest to be common sense though.
