Beale’s Rangers flop was likened to Van Nistelrooy but is now close to exit.

Rangers had a focus on a player that was compared to the Dutch icon, but it appears that he may be departing.

Glasgow Rangers have won all their matches in 2024, scoring 24 goals and conceded only four in all competitions. They aim to build on their League Cup victory in December.

Despite potential challenges, Philippe Clement’s leadership has transformed the Light Blues from trailing Celtic by eight points after seven Premiership matches to leading the fight for the title.

The performances of some of the Gers’ summer recruits contributed significantly to the club’s early season troubles. Under Michael Beale, Cyriel Dessers struggled in front of goal, while fellow striker Danilo received limited opportunities.

Dessers has 14 goals and 7 assists, although his play has been uneven and hampered by injuries.
The duo still have an opportunity to be successful between now and May, whereas Beale’s other forward recruit from last summer, Sam Lammers, has proven to be one of the squad’s worst additions in many years.
How much did Rangers pay for Sam Lammers?

After finishing the 2022/23 season without a trophy, Beale splurged on a number of summer players in the hopes of overcoming Celtic’s previous dominance in the Scottish game.

Dessers and Danilo were brought in from Cremonese and Feyenoord, while Lammers was one of his first acquisitions, costing roughly £3 million from Italian side Atalanta.

With the Gers losing Alfredo Morelos, Ryan Kent, and Antonio Colak over the off-season, Beale needed to add some firepower to the squad, but Lammers seemed like an odd choice.

Despite scoring four games in the previous two seasons, the forward only managed two goals in 31 matches for the club.

Despite recent troubles, former PSV Eindhoven youth coach Kevin Hofland praised the forward. Earlier in his career, he was compared to a Dutch icon.

“I worked with Sam all three seasons he was with PSV,” Hofland added. “He scored a lot of goals; he could score with both his feet and his head.”

“I’ve never seen someone with his technical abilities. Nobody at PSV doubted that he’d have a professional career. In the Netherlands, journalists likened him to Ruud van Nistelrooy. But at the club, we did not put him under such strain.”

Van Nistelrooy’s time at Eredivisie side Heerenveen, where he played early in his career, allowed him to channel the attributes that made the former Manchester United striker a force of nature. He scored 19 goals in 35 matches in all competitions.

Lammers has not scored as many goals since leaving Heerenveen, and despite Beale deploying him slightly deeper in an attacking midfield role, the consensus was that he may be an ideal signing.

Just six months later, he got a loan move to FC Utrecht amidst Glasgow’s disastrous first half of the season.

Sam Lammers statistics at Rangers

Despite scoring only two goals in 17 appearances, his anonymous performances cost the club points, particularly under Beale.

Despite starting only ten Premiership matches, the former Atalanta player ranked seventh in goals and assists (three), fourth in shots on target per game (0.9), 17th in big chances created (one), and 26th in key passes per game (0.3), indicating that he was not only wasteful with his shots but also failed to create the volume of chances expected for his transfer fee.

Lammers’ performance under Clement was limited, with only one goal and one assist in eight starts. However, this could be attributed to the Belgian manager’s midfield injury issue.

Sam Lammers now stars for Utrecht.

After signing Fabio Silva on loan, Lammers was quickly transferred back to his hometown on a temporary deal until the end of the season, and he has already scored more goals for his new team in only six games than he did in 31 for Rangers.

The 26-year-old has one goal and three assists, including one against league leaders PSV.

Lammers has already generated five huge chances, averaging two critical passes per game, and taken more shots on target (1.3) than he did in the first half of the season at the Light Blues, indicating that playing at this level may fit him better.

Despite this better level of performance, it appears that Clement is already planning the player’s summer exit.

FC Twente is reportedly interested in acquiring him for a sum of £2.5 million, citing his impressive performances since returning to his homeland next month.

This would allow the Light Blues to recuperate virtually all of the £3 million cost they paid to recruit him last year, and it may prove to be a great piece of transfer business.

There is no doubt that Lammers is a superb player, but playing in Scotland did not fit his style at all.

He has obviously demonstrated his creative abilities in the Dutch top division, and getting a sum for the attacker may enable Clement to make a few acquisitions of his own ahead of the 2024/25 season.

Despite being compared to Van Nistelrooy, the £18k-per-week Dutchman did not have the expected impact at Rangers under Beale. He only scored twice.

Hopefully, Clement does not make the same mistakes as his predecessor in the transfer window, but based on his first three signings, the Ibrox side can expect an entertaining summer.