Michael Beale reckons Rangers are facing their "biggest rebuild in years" this summer as they get set to finish the season empty handed.
The Ibrox boss suffered a 1-0 defeat to Treble-chasing rivals Celtic at Hampden as they lost their grip in the Scottish Cup. And Beale admitted a huge summer of change is coming as he prepares for a clearout. Nico Raskin and Todd Cantwell arrived in January and Kieran Dowell is set to arrive from Norwich City in the summer with goalkeeper Jack Butland also on the radar. The likes of Allan McGregor, Scott Arfield, Filip Helander and Steven Davis are also out of contract and that will give Beale the scope to perform the surgery he feels Rangers need to get back to the top table.
And after watching Jota’s header down them at Hampden, he said: "It will be the biggest rebuild this club has seen in a number of years. You have to be respectful, you come in in November and you know changes will be made, every time you come to a press conference people ask you about it.
“I've got a group of players that I need to manage and keep moving forward and motivate for the games. It's obvious I'm not going to condemn people and send them away. But it's also obvious that we are getting to the summer and there will be some change. If you haven't heard any news about certain players, it will be amiss to not ask the same questions because if you don't hear anything, then people's contracts are running out and it gives you a good indication that there is change in the air.
"We’ve been here in a final and missed big opportunities on that day. We’ve been here in a semi-final and missed big opportunities to change the direction of the season. It has been in our hands and even against a really strong opponent, as strong a Celtic team as I’ve seen, our Rangers team have performed well today but where it counts in both boxes we’ve fallen short. In the summer, there will be fresh faces, renewed energy and renewed ideas with some of the boys that we’ve got now of course. We have to do better, all of us.”
Beale recently said that Alfredo Morelos and Allan McGregor could be for the off next season and that the majority of players who featured against St Mirren recently would be at the club next year which had some fans worried the same players who flopped this season would serve up more failure. He clarified: “What I said against St Mirren was about the boys playing who were all in contract. Within the one or two I’ve mentioned are out of contract. Everyone else is in contract so they’re not going anywhere overnight.”
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