Glasgow Rangers officially confirmed that Kevin Thelwell will take up a position as the club’s new sporting director ahead of the 2025/26 campaign.
The 51-year-old chief will arrive at Ibrox to take up his role when his contract with Premier League side Everton expires at the end of the season.
In part of his first official interview with the club’s website, Thelwell said: “From the first conversations, it was clear to me how ambitious the club is, and I’m excited to play a part in shaping its next chapter.”
Whilst this can be interpreted in many different ways, that comment from the Everton man suggests that there will be changes to the playing squad in the summer to align with the ambition of the club.
Thelwell will have the chance to ‘shape’ the team, which lost to Athletic Bilbao in the quarter-finals of the Europa League, and that could include ruthlessly getting rid of some of the club’s current players, who have failed to lead Rangers to a trophy this season.
One of the Gers players who could find themselves on the chopping block when the Everton chief officially takes up his position could be striker Cyriel Dessers.
Why Rangers should cash in on Cyriel Dessers
The Nigeria international was signed from Cremonese by Michael Beale ahead of the 2023/24 campaign for a reported fee of £4.3m, and the striker has had mixed success throughout his time at the club to date.
Dessers has scored 29 goals in the Scottish Premiership since the start of last season, which does not sound like a terrible return on paper, but his underlying numbers suggest that his performances have not been as impressive as his goal return indicates.
The experienced marksman has not made the most of the opportunities that have been created for him in the top-flight, missing a whopping 47 ‘big chances’ to go along with his 29 goals.
This shows that he has been incredibly wasteful with the high-quality openings that his teammates have created for him, which has made him a liability in the final third because Rangers cannot trust that he will deliver in big moments due to his lack of composure and quality in front of goal.
Appearances
35
31
Goals
16
13
Conversion rate
16%
19%
Big chances missed
27
20
Assists
4
2
Duel success rate
33%
34%
Dessers has not only struggled in the Premiership, as his statistics above illustrate, however, as the former Serie A attacker has also failed to deliver on the European stage.
Since the start of the 2023/24 campaign, the 30-year-old forward has scored four goals and missed ten ‘big chances’ in 19 appearances in the Europa League. This shows that he has rarely provided a goal threat in Europe for the Light Blues, once again, because of his wasteful finishing.
Dessers, as you can see in the clip above, has had his moments of class, which is also backed up by his return of 29 goals, but he has proven that he cannot be relied upon over the course of a season to lead the line for a team competing for titles.
The striker, as evidenced by the aforementioned statistics, has shown that he is not a reliable finisher, and that is why Thelwell should look to cash in on him to provide the next manager at Ibrox with an upgrade in the number nine position in the summer transfer window.
The incoming Rangers sporting director could seal an instant blinder, however, by axing a flop who has been an even worse signing than Dessers, Nedim Bajrami.
Why Thelwell should sell Bajrami
If Thelwell wants to shape the team in a way that tracks with the club’s high ambitions, seemingly to compete for trophies next season, then the underperformers in the squad should be moved on, if possible, this summer.
Rangers reportedly spent £3.4m to sign Bajrami from Italian side Sassuolo in the summer transfer window of 2024, and he has failed to live up to any hype that came from that amount of money being splashed on his services.
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To date, the Albania international has racked up three goals and one assist in 36 appearances in the Premiership and the Europa League combined for the Light Blues this season.
The 26-year-old arrived at Ibrox in what should be the prime years of his career. He is not a young player still learning his trade or a veteran at the end of his playing days, which suggests that it would have been fair to expect instant quality from him on the pitch.
Unfortunately, that has not been the case for Bajrami because, as shown by his aforementioned statistics, he has failed to deliver goals or assists on a regular basis from an attacking midfield or a wide position.
The Albanian attacker, who is reportedly on a wage of £12k-per-week, has scored one goal and failed to provide any assists in his last 13 appearances in all competitions for the Scottish giants.
Appearances
25
Starts
13
Goals
2
Big chances created
4
Assists
1
Ground duel success rate
46%
Aerial duel success rate
38%
As you can see in the table above, Bajrami has rarely contributed at the top end of the pitch and has failed to earn a place as a regular starter, under Philippe Clement or Barry Ferguson, whilst being weak in his duels out of possession as well.
These statistics show that the £3.4m signing has not given much back in return for the money that was spent on him. Meanwhile, Dessers has, at least, scored 29 goals and provided some good moments in a Rangers shirt in the last two seasons.
This suggests that he has been an even worse signing than the Nigerian forward because they cost a fairly similar amount of money, yet Bajrami has delivered significantly less on the pitch in his time at Ibrox.
With this in mind, Thelwell must instantly axe the attacking midfielder from the squad in the summer transfer window as one of his first moves to shape the squad in a new direction, moving on players who have not performed well enough for a team that wants to compete for titles.
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That could represent an instant blinder by the sporting director because it could free up space for a new attacker to be brought in, which could improve the team’s chances of success if they get the replacement right.