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Gareth McAuley Will Provide Welcome Depth at the Back

By Joseph Sinke

BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND - OCTOBER 04: Gareth McAuley jokes with team mates during the Northern Ireland international football squad training session at Windsor Park on October 4, 2017 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland play Germany in a 2018 World Cup group C qualifier tomorrow evening. (Photo by Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)
BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND - OCTOBER 04: Gareth McAuley jokes with team mates during the Northern Ireland international football squad training session at Windsor Park on October 4, 2017 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland play Germany in a 2018 World Cup group C qualifier tomorrow evening. (Photo by Charles McQuillan/Getty Images) /
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The signing of Gareth McAuley was a bit of a surprise but it comes as a welcome one. McAuley is a tall (6 feet, 5 inches) and lanky central defender with years of Premier League experience.

The North Irishman has been with Premier League side West Brom since 2011, only falling out of regular playing time last year as they attempted to get younger at the back. McAuley was a fan favorite in his time with the club and scored 17 goals in 227 appearances.

At age 38 McAuley is unlikely to be a regular starter or contributor for Rangers but he likely does still have something left in the tank.

He may have gotten too slow for the Premier League as he aged, but the biggest difference between Scottish football and the top league down south is generally the sheer pace of the game. Losing a half a step from his prime may have made him too slow to contain the various world-class strikers in England, but he will likely still be able to keep up with most opponents in Scotland.

The main reason why McAuley will be so welcome is that he is a proper central defender who plays a similar style to the current staunch center back pairing of Connor Goldson and Nikola Katic.

Goldson and Katic have (along with Allan McGregor) have consistently been the backbone of the squad in the early season as an incredibly stout defense that has allowed more than one goal on a single occasion the entire season.

Goldson and Katic are also the only field players who have played every available minute of the Scottish league season and both have played nearly every minute of Europa league. Both have been utterly reliable workhorses, but to go and get a veteran who should be capable of filling in and playing the same style of defense as either player will be very helpful.

It will allow Steven Gerrard to keep his back line fresh going forward and also give some insurance in case of an injury.

McAuley may be older than you typically would want, it is always a risk to take on a player of such an advanced age, but as long as he does have something left in the tank he should be a valuable addition for the rest of the season.

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