DOF assigned to renovate Ibrox; Nils Koppen lists six Rangers priorities on his to-do list.

The Ibrox giants’ new era of player recruitment begins with the appointment of the Belgian.

With a ton of work ahead of him as the new director of football recruitment for the Rangers, Nils Koppen has been named.

The Belgian was named by the Ibrox club on Friday as Ross Wilson’s replacement. Wilson departed Govan in April to join Nottingham Forest in the Premier League. Koppen was brought in from the Dutch powerhouse PSV, and he previously collaborated with Gers manager Philippe Clement at Genk.

At Ibrox, Koppen will have a significant influence over player trade strategies, contract extensions, and transfers. When the 38-year-old begins his new position in January, what other responsibilities does he have both short- and long-term? Here, Football Scotland examines Koppen’s Ibrox in-tray by identifying the six top priorities.

Examine the squad

Koppen’s first task will be to take a close look at the current roster sizes of the Rangers. Not only will its advantages be listed, but its disadvantages will also be addressed in greater detail.

What does the team not have? What kind of profile is necessary for Clement’s style of play? Who among them doesn’t have a future at the club in the long run? How can he assist in shaping the team into one that is capable of regularly contending for championships?

Briefing by Philippe Clement

Naturally, Koppen’s first official encounter with Clement will be crucial. Rangers can only view this as a plus because the two are well acquainted with one another and their working styles.

And that ought to facilitate the expeditious progress of their collaborative efforts in the near future, as they want to initiate the process of hiring and contract extensions, among other things.

Decision-making period for contract extensions

And Koppen has it as his next task on his list of priorities. Currently, the contracts of seven Rangers players will expire in May 2024.

Abdallah Sima, a Brighton loanee, is one of them; the others have long-term agreements. Borna Barisic, Ryan Jack, Jon McLaughlin, Leon Balogun, Kemar Roofe, and John Lundstram are a few of them.

Koppen has to select which of those names merits new terminology. Age, past injury history, appearances in the 2023–2024 season, and suitability to play for a Clement team are just a few of the things Koppen needs to take into account as January approaches and these players are free to speak with other teams if they so want.

As a result, you may assume that Koppen, Clement, and those whose contracts are about to expire will have a lot of conversations.

Make a shopping list for January.

It would be prudent of Koppen to make sure he is one step ahead of the game and begin shortlisting feasible targets for the forthcoming January window if he can anticipate first-team departures in the summer owing to expired contracts.

Though it will be Koppen’s first transfer window, he will be eager to take advantage of as many player incoming opportunities as possible. It is a notoriously difficult month to conduct business.

Prior to the window opening, roles such as right winger, central defense, and midfielder might be identified. It will be Koppen’s responsibility to provide Clement with the players he needs to strengthen Rangers’ second half of the season as they compete for titles on three fronts.

Determine and get rid of deadwood

Koppen will be considering players who may be surplus to requirements under Clement, in addition to those whose contracts expire in May.

These players might include seasoned goalkeeper Jon McLaughlin, as well as Robby McCrorie and Kieran Wright, the latter two of whom are at an age when they undoubtedly long for more first-team opportunity.

Given how successfully Jack Butland has adapted at Ibrox, none of the three have kicked a competitive ball this season, and Koppen might be eager to let them go.

Ianis Hagi will probably be added to that list, and although though Dujon Sterling only joined Chelsea under Michael Beale in the summer, his time may be running out.

Bring back the player trading paradigm

It will be Koppen’s responsibility to adhere to a transparent player trading mechanism. Following Ross Wilson’s resignation in April as sporting director, Beale, the boss at the time, oversaw the summer hiring campaign.

It’s safe to say that the Englishman did not pass with flying colors, as the only two successful candidates to date are Jack Butland and Abdallah Sima. Danilo could argue that he should be there, but in 19 appearances, the Brazilian has scored just six goals.

The Rangers can now work toward developing players and selling them for big money—something they were able to do to some extent under Wilson with the sales of Joe Aribo, Calvin Bassey, and Nathan Patterson—with Koppen in place to assist Clement. Beale’s summer signing policy was ultimately the reason he was fired in October.

Koppen will be trying to address the Rangers’ current lack of sellable assets in their roster. To see that it CAN work, all he has to do is glance across the city to Celtic and their recent business.