Rabbi Matondo has the potential to be a frightening talent for Rangers this season.
That's the verdict of Ibrox hero Barry Ferguson who also tipped fellow Wales international Tom Lawrence to have a 'big impact' on Giovanni van Bronckhorst's side. The Dutchman was very quiet in the transfer market in the early part of the summer with John Souttar on a pre-contract the only arrival but he's kicked into life in the last couple of weeks and added Antonio Colak, Lawrence and Matondo to boost his firepower.
Rangers face a big couple of weeks at the start of the season as they bid to get off to the perfect start in the Premiership in their quest to win back the title from Celtic while they face Champions League qualifiers as they look to dine at Europe's top table. They will need to negotiate two rounds to earn a spot in the lucrative group stages. Two men who could prove key to that assignment are the new Welsh internationals.
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Ferguson believes Matondo could become a real fans' favourite with his bag of tricks and is a defender's worst nightmare while Lawrence is coming into his prime and after being a real driving force at Derby he can replicate that at Ibrox.
Speaking about the duo in his Daily Record column, he said: "I’m very excited about the two Welsh internationals who have just been signed up. Derby County were almost the biggest story in English football last season as they fought to stay in the Championship despite a 21 point deduction. And every time I watched them, Lawrence stood out a country mile.
"I’m not going to say he’ll be a surprise package because a lot of people will already know just what a good player he is. But I do think he’ll make a big impact on this team. He’s 28-years-old and just coming into his prime after getting a good grounding at Manchester United and Leicester.
"And he was the driving force behind what Derby came so close to achieving last season against all the odds. So I’m very interested to see how he adjusts to life at Ibrox and I absolutely can’t wait to get a first look at young Matondo who has the potential to be a frightening talent.
"This young kid has pace to burn - I actually saw someone say he could give Usain Bolt a good race over 100 metres - and that makes him a defender’s worst nightmare. I’ve played with a few speed merchants in my day with Peter Lovenkrands and Obafemi Martins springing instantly to mind.
"As a midfielder I loved playing with guys like that because they could turn an average pass into a brilliant one just by getting on the end of it before anyone else had time to see it for what it really was. Just ping one over the top between the full back and the centre back and let the whippets get after it. It made my job easy.
"But, from what little I’ve seen of Matondo, he’s got a lot more in his locker than just scorching running power. He looks like a real bag of tricks and a player who can score goals as well as create them. In other words, the kind of player who could become a real fans’ favourite and a joy to watch in a Rangers shirt.
"Schalke paid Manchester City almost £10m for him a couple of years ago so to pick him up now, at the age of 21, for less than a third of that looks like a very good bit of business even if there is a bit of work to be done on his all round game. The same could be said of Sakala who is also like lightning but who looked a little bit raw at times during his first season at the club. He may divide opinion but I think there’s a player in there who has the potential to become much better now that he’s had 12 months to settle into the club.
"And when you think about guys like Matondo, Sakala, Kent and Wright running at defences next season it’s no wonder Rangers fans are starting to get excited about what might be to come. Can you imagine what training is going to be like with these guys all trying to prove to the manager that they should be in his starting line-up? The place will be electric and that can only be a massive positive for the team. The way I’m feeling right now, this new season can’t come quickly enough."
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