Glasgow Rangers suffered a major blow to their Premiership title hopes on Sunday as Philippe Clement's men lipped to an uncharacteristic defeat.
Indeed, their 3-2 loss to Ross County was only their third domestic setback under the Ibrox manager and their first-ever defeat to the Highland side, which could have damaging consequences in the race for the title.
The truth is, Rangers were never at the races, despite going a goal up inside the first 20 minutes. Three second-half goals by the Staggies ensured there was no way back for the Ibrox side, who now need to win all six of their remaining matches to win the league.
The shock loss certainly proved that some of the senior players fail to perform when the pressure is on, evident against County and Celtic last season.
What is needed is yet another summer clear-out, with Clement bringing in his own signings to complement some of the players already in his squad.
Freeing up the wage bill is a must, which will be made easier by the fact there are several first team players who are out of contract in the summer.
Who could leave Rangers this summer
Overall, there are six players who, as it stands, will be departing Ibrox once the season is finished.
Ryan Jack, Leon Balogun, Kemar Roofe, Borna Barisic, Jon McLaughlin and John Lundstram are the ones who have yet to be offered a new deal, and if they leave, Clement could free up a total of over £90k-per-week, which could prove crucial with regard to Clement’s transfer plans.
Player
Club joined from
Games played
Ryan Jack
Aberdeen
210
John Lundstram
Sheffield United
147
Jon McLaughlin
Sunderland
46
Kemar Roofe
Anderlecht
99
Leon Balogun
QPR
80
Borna Barisic
NK Osijek
232
A few short weeks ago, Lundstram was the only one on this list who had any chance of securing a contract extension due to a few solid performances under Clement.
This has looked like a purple patch, however, as his recent displays have been far shy of the required standard at the Light Blues.
John Lundstram’s statistics this season
The former Sheffield United midfielder struggled throughout the entirety of the 2022/23 campaign, scoring just five goals in 52 matches, failing to help Rangers win a trophy of any kind.
An underwhelming start to the current campaign under Michael Beale fuelled talk that this was going to be his final season at the Glasgow side.
Once Clement arrived, however, Lundstram became a regular member of the starting XI and has missed only one game since mid-October, a clash against Motherwell on Christmas Eve.
Among his teammates, Lundstram currently ranks second in the squad for accurate passes per game (64.3) in the top flight, while also ranking fourth for big chances created (four), sixth for key passes per game (1.4) and fourth for tackles per match (1.7), which shows that, statistically anyway, he isn’t performing too badly.
Against County, however, the Englishman failed to track George Harmon, who pounced on Jack Butland’s parry to score the second goal for the host side and, in general, he looked lost at times.
During the match, Lundstram lost possession 12 times and while he did succeed with 90% of his passes, the midfielder offered next to nothing going forward.
Clement must finally drop wasteful Rangers man who was worse than Lundstram
The Light Blues attacker put on a horrorshow against Ross County on Sunday.
It will be a big ask but getting him fit and healthy heading into the 2024/25 campaign could see Clement gain a player who is on the cusp of making it at the Light Blues.
Much will depend on his mentality and attitude, but the 50-year-old has placed his trust in youth before this season and he will certainly do it again if the player is good enough.