Rangers star Glen Kamara has stolen the headlines over the past week for vile racist abuse received, but is a contract extension forthcoming?
It’s that time again, the great football drought of 2021. Hate it, run from it, the international break arrives regardless and, sadly, it comes at the time Scottish football takes it’s own mid-season pause – ostensibly to reflect on how overwhelmingly dominant Rangers have been all year.
Long time readers will remember the disdain shared here for the temporary death of the game, international football not being real football after all, during this time. Aye, there were a few years there when it was easier to stomach that’s true, but this year especially we just don’t want it to end. Kind of like Neil Lennon’s tenure at Celtic.
Nonetheless, despite the complete lack of live footy to compensate for how awful TV is these days, things still continue behind the scenes unabated.
The latest talk has all been about Glen Kamara, mostly for the disgusting racial abuse he received in the Slavia Prague game and the latter’s half-hearted attempts to apologise (read: sweep the whole thing under the rug) One thing fewer have mentioned, however, is just how good and, indeed, key to the Gers success this year Kamara has been.
It seems that is all changing as Kamara has confirmed there are discussions with the light blues over an extension to his contract, due to expire in 2023. Steven Gerrard had previously mentioned he desperately wanted the midfielder to stay longer at Ibrox, but only now does it seem we’re starting to see the wheels be put into motion. Kamara had this to say, as quoted by the Scottish Sun;
"“There’s been some talks. The season’s been good, obviously we’ve just become champions.It’s been a success so far. I still have two years left on my contract.There’s still time over the summer to see what will happen.”"
The Finnish star signed for the Gers in 2019 for only £50,000 and he’s only 25, still yet to hit his prime, so his value has doubtless skyrocketed this season. Obviously he’s far from the only one, but one can’t deny Kamara in particular has been a standout.
Rangers’ strength this season has been their stellar defensive record, maintained in large part by Kamara’s stalwart performances from central midfield. Consider he leads the league, in the position, in successful tackles and winning possession, despite the light blues enjoying a healthy majority of the ball themselves. The Gers have seen continued growth year on year in every department under Gerrard, but none more so than at the back – Kamara absolutely had a part to play in this.
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Regardless, it’s good to see Rangers aren’t looking to cash in. There was always the fear of “one and done” with the Premiership, particularly as many would have seen the goal as stopping Celtic winning their 10 in a row. The value of successful players is always vastly higher than otherwise, so it wasn’t unthinkable the Gers, often accused of yet still struggling financially, would look to offload some quality Monaco style.
With a commitment to bringing Kamara on board for more years, it seems obvious that Rangers are building for future success – and such with Gerrard at the helm. This was his man, after all, and this is his choice for an extension. Hopefully he puts pen to paper soon and more from the 55 squad follow suit, at least it would give us something to talk about.