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I know that it makes good business sense. I know that this is our "trading model". I know that he only played regularly in the first team for one season, but I'm still sad that Calvin Bassey is leaving. His enthusiasm and desire was something to witness. I hope he continues to develop as a player and hope I'll be able to watch him on TV in Europe.

I'm interested in why he got stuck in the Championship for so long and I'm interested in whether or not at £4m he's value for money at Rangers. I hope he is and I trust our recruitment team but I'm not seeing an up and coming young pro who's ready to break through.

Same with Patterson and Tav - raked in circ £35-£40M for two players who weren't established 1st team players. Don't get me wrong, Patterson and Bassey are both excellent players, but this has to be seen as a positive. This has to be our model going forward. Fans may not like it, but getting huge fees for "potential" is massive. That's why we signed 4 of 5 players for the B Team. Lowry and McCann look like the two who could be next. Both have huge potential and clubs already sniffing around Lowry - that's why it was essential we got him signed up on a new contract. I wrote an article almost quarter of a century ago saying that we needed to invest more in youth and development teams as that is where the profit comes - Patterson and Bassey are proof this works.

The issue isn't so much that Barisic can be off form, that can apply to anyone. It's that he is so poor for such a large part of every season. We do have a problem at LB that has been covered up by the unexpected rise of Calvin Bassey and now can't be ignored any longer.

I'll drive the ambulance down for him !! Reinvesting his wage in a striker more likely to be fit would be a plus.

Of course, that goes without saying, but I'd rather we went for younger players. If we go for 29-year-olds, we don't get any sell-on value.

Signing well wrt replacements is very much part of the economic effects, as well as on the pitch. It isn't easy trying to replace an over 20M pound player on a relative shoestring. If you struggle to replace him, then you are effectively burning part of the incoming cash. Best example is another left back, Tierney, going for a similar fee to Bassey. Three years after leaving they've still not properly replaced him and burnt the best part of a third of the transfer fee received for him in trying to do so. Off the top of my head (feel free to add if I have forgotten any) Taylor Bolingoli 😃 New Argentinian The advantage that we have, is that we already have (if we can get him to show his good side) an excellent player in the building. A year ago, Patterson and Bassey were established on our subs bench and their then cumulative 40 years (same as Allan McGregor years just now) may if things were to go well wrt to add-ons, become worth close to 40 million sterling too the club. Fantastic from a balance sheet POV and a tribute to the football operation. The big money paid out for players in the Scottish league, tends to be for this age group and level, where real potential is valued highly. The valuable signings may often turn out to be some of these low key B teamers, if they can time their run well.

Barisic is a very hot and cold player. On his day he can be terrific but when he's not 'on it' he can be a liability. If Bassey is on his way then we definitely need a new LB.

Circa £50M from sale of Patterson, Aribo and Bassey - we spent £500K on Aribo and Bassey. Business model starting too take shape and pay dividends.

I guess there are many things that go together to make a price and the news that Filip Helander is off to see a specialist meant that another CB simply had to be brought on before the remaining pre-season games. Leaving fees to one side I imagine Goldson-Davies is now the central pairing of choice.

if we could only get a player like Jimmy we might win some trophies

Do you watch a lot of Sheffield United games?

The total fee was £1.6M and he only had 6 months left on his contract. I'll reserve judgement on him until I see him play for Rangers. I'm sure we can find YouTube clips showing errors made by lets say, Calvin Bassey, whom we've sold for €27M or thereabouts.

He`s an EPL player at Liverpool and his contract runs till 2025. 3m+ is "cheap".

The fee is £3M with £1M add on. Not a bad fee for a player who's played nearly 200 games in Championship. We do need a CB - Helander is injured and can't be relied on, Katic and Simpson aren't good enough, which only leaves Soutar and King. Sands to fill in if / when required but is a midfield player. Doesn't take away from the fact that we still need a left back (and centre forward) and think we'll sign one or two more players before the season starts.

They should visit the top floor were they have paintings of former lord provosts it's more like a rogue's gallery

I still think we should have kept Balogun, but you never know, maybe he wanted more games than we were offering.

Given the state that Derby are in, and in league 1, I suspect we will still be covering the lion share of his wage. Seems an odd one at this stage. I’d rather we sold and recovered some of the fee paid.

I'm not sure a loan benefits us. However, I wouldn't be opposed to moving him on so we can bring in another striker. Roofe played 36 games last season and the same the year before. What's that? 15-20 games missed. He did score 18 and 16 goals, though. That is significant, I think.

Don't understand all this profile stuff just have a look at the player and if he's good enough sign him

NO BASSEY NO RANGERS

Yes we will miss him, but he has only played about 50 games for us. We would miss Tav, Goldson, Kent or Morelos more. We will also miss Aribo especially on the European nights.

Have we given Ramsey a scouting job as our 'man in Wales' ? We did the Belgium League, then it was Scousers, now it is the Welsh.... 😄

Chill out. We are gonna stomp some serious ass this season. In Gio I Trust.

Luke 17:2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin. God is the ultimate arbiter. No man escapes his ruling.

Not a whole season, but you don't have to go far back to see a poorish pre-season extend into the start of the season. Last season, we were poor in all games, other than the Real Madrid friendly where players were well up for it. Fast forward a week or so and 3 competitive defeats on the bounce, Malmo x2 and our fist league defeat for 17 months. The same soft centre would return regularly throughout the season and cost us the league. One other that vaguely sticks in the mind was McCoist's first season as manager. Poor pre season (started in Germany IIRC) extended into competitive games. Drew first league game at home to Hearts then went out to Malmo (CL) and Maribor (EL) without winning a game. The important thing about hitting the ground running is obviously CL qualifying, the land of milk and honey. The poor starts above hurt the club's finances in a big way.

A left back and centre half still required and depending on Alfie and Roofe injury progress / being sold, another striker.

And there never will be once. 🙂

If this goes through and the terms are right, could it signal further transfer activity?

I don't think anyone can argue with that fee. Hopefully addons are achievable.

Yes, this season has to be when James Sands consolidates his early promise

That's a very rigid and workmanlike midfield - not a bad thing in itself; Liverpool employ the same. I would hope the FBs are playing high and wide, with the front-three playing narrow, though.

I'm strangely positive about selling Bassey, aye we'll miss him, but its a phenomenal piece of business if the quoted figures bear out, and it means some of the money can then be outlayed on more potential future stars. We HAVE to operate this way.

Nobody is indispensable.

But if he stays he only has 2 years left and if he does not sign a contract extension the money we will get for him will drop drastically next year, if he was on a 3 or 4 year contract I would agree to keep hold of him he is absolutely brilliant but he is not and after the Goldson saga and Aribo leaving for alot less than we could have received because he was not tied down makes me think we should cash in if a player does not want to sign a contract with 2 years left we need to stop letting players run down their contracts.

I predict that the week leading up to the first old firm game of the season at ra Stydome, BBC Scotland and the Daily Record will wheel out Neil Lennon(pray for him), Martin O'Neill, Paul Lambert, Broonaldo, John Hartson, Chris Sutton and, a non singing, non gesticulating, non swaggering Martin Compston; all predicting a comfortable Sellik victory.