Spending like Dick Advocaat but Rangers aren’t playing like him | OneFootball

This summer’s Rangers transfer window breaks records but not for the right reasons. Most signings have come from League One, the Championship and obscure leagues in Europe. Yet the club posted its biggest single-window spend since the Dick Advocaat era. Not since 1999 have Rangers spent this much in one go. Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s highest spend reached about £18 million. Michael Beale’s spend hit around £20 million. This summer Rangers smashed both totals. Rangers’ summer spending gets serious

The figures tell the story. Oscar Cortes joined for £4.5 million, edging closer to £5 million once extras come in. Thelo Aasgaard cost an initial £3–4 million, rising to £5 million with clauses. His constant injury problems make those clauses unlikely to trigger. Emmanuel Fernandez arrived from Peterborough for £4 million despite holding a valuation of £300,000 at the time. Barry Fry is laughing at that one.

Those three deals alone took Rangers to about £15 million without delivering any real improvement on the pitch. Oliver Antman’s £4 million fee lifted the total to around £20 million. Djeidi Gassama came in at a reported £2 million, though some sources say nearer £3.5 million. Splitting the difference still pushes the figure past £23 million. Nobel Mendy joins for between £2 and £3.5 million. Add Joe Rothwell’s £600,000 and the total climbs close to £25 million.

For a club recently flagged on the FFP watch list this spend shocks supporters. Last summer Philippe Clement worked with roughly £13 million. The new ownership injected more funds this time. The question is whether the spending delivers value. Only Antman looks capable of justifying his fee with a potential value of £30 million. The rest have yet to prove their worth.

In Advocaat’s day similar spending brought Fernando Ricksen, Giovanni van Bronckhorst, George Albertz, Bert Konterman and Arthur Numan. These players each cost around £5 million and brought proven quality. Tore André Flo’s £12 million fee still stands as a Scottish record. Back then Rangers signed stars. Now the club spends heavily on gambles and the early signs offer little encouragement. Rangers’ summer spending gets serious

This window baffles supporters. Rangers have spent like it is 1999 again but without the calibre of signings to match.