Are we intentionally 'Tanking' this season (24/25)?

[Sutton_blows_goats 4,850]

Tanking in baseball is when a team, usually realising they're not going to make the playoffs, decides to intentionally lose games. Sounds weird, right? Why would anyone want to lose? Well, the idea is to secure a higher draft pick or develop young players for the future instead of putting in a half-hearted attempt to win now. Think of it as a long-term strategy, even though it might be painful for fans in the short term.

A classic example of tanking is the Houston Astros in the early 2010s. They were absolutely dreadful for a few seasons, but it was all part of a plan. By losing games and focusing on acquiring top talent through the draft, they eventually built a powerhouse team that went on to win the World Series in 2017. 

 

Football and baseball are very different sports. But there's an interesting parallel when you look at how some football clubs are managed. In baseball, teams have farm systems—basically a network of minor league teams where they develop young players until they're ready for the big leagues.

In football, the likes of the Red Bull group (which owns RB Leipzig, RB Salzburg, and New York Red Bulls, among others) and the City Football Group (which owns Manchester City, New York City FC, and several others) are creating something similar. They move players between clubs within their network, developing talent and building squads that can compete at the highest levels. It's not a farm system in the traditional baseball sense, but it's pretty close.

 

Although we don't have a farm system or any way to develop younger players in a competitive environment Rangers seem to be taking a page out of the tanking playbook this season—though it's more of a wage dump than a full-on tank. They're not expected to be all that competitive this year by most supporters. We wont be intentionally losing games by any means, but the early signs are we have no way of being competitive either. Drawing with a poor Hearts side who had a nightmare pre-season in terms of results and were soundly beaten 3-1 by Dundee last week, and being knocked out of the early Champions League qualifiers by a very ordinary looking Dynamo Kiev side.  There is a few weeks left in the transfer window and the manager has been clear we need to get high earners out before we can bring players in (who will probably be on less wages). The club's focus is on cutting costs instead of recruiting quality and I hope the plan is to save up a transfer kitty for next summer. So while this season will be a tough one to watch, is there hope that better days are ahead, with some new signings to look forward to once the club's finances are in better shape?

 

While tanking in baseball is all about playing the long game, it looks like Rangers are doing something similar and although they would never admit it publicly its pretty clear we are not being proactive. Instead of losing games and getting top end draft picks, we are recruiting young cheap talent, developing them while not spending anywhere near what we have in the past in wages with the hope that these players will develop into quality players and guide is into a comfortable 2nd place league finish who, when the time is right will be supplemented by 'ready to go' more experienced pros who will demand a higher wage. Patience is key, but do we as a fan base have patience? Can we take a 'tanking' season and what would the fallout be?

 

 

[Sutton_blows_goats 4,850]

Here is a list of wage savings from players who have left so far this season (take the actual numbers with a pinch of salt, this is supposed to be more illustrative than accurate)

 

 

If we say we have roughly saved 9 million a year so far (not counting the likes of Silva who was on a good wage for his loan) thats a good start, but then if we look at the names that have been told to leave or linked with leaving:

 

 

There is still a massive work effort to be done to make some real savings on the wage side. But when you see it like this it really illustrates how badly we have managed the wage bill for a long, long time.

 

(source: Rangers 2024 Wages | Player & Team totals (salarysport.com))

Edited August 17 by Sutton_blows_goats
Forgot Lundstram had left

[Rousseau 10,171]

I don't have a problem with Tavernier's wages, simply because he has been here so long and has been a consistent top performer. 

 

Davies and Matondo, though... 

 

[BlackSocksRedTops 3,646]

I was led to believe that Lammars was closer to 28k a week?

[RANGERRAB 3,493]

1 hour ago, Sutton_blows_goats said:

Here is a list of wage savings from players who have left so far this season (take the actual numbers with a pinch of salt, this is supposed to be more illustrative than accurate)

 

 

If we say we have roughly saved 9 million a year so far (not counting the likes of Silva who was on a good wage for his loan) thats a good start, but then if we look at the names that have been told to leave or linked with leaving:

 

 

There is still a massive work effort to be done to make some real savings on the wage side. But when you see it like this it really illustrates how badly we have managed the wage bill for a long, long time.

 

(source: Rangers 2024 Wages | Player & Team totals (salarysport.com))

No one else would pay these players those sort of wages. That is where the problem lies

[Rousseau 10,171]

4 minutes ago, RANGERRAB said:

No one else would pay these players those sort of wages. That is where the problem lies

Absolutely. 

 

We shouldn't be giving them these wages in the first place and, also, they should sold before they reach them in the general increase they get for the length of their stay. 

[Sutton_blows_goats 4,850]

13 minutes ago, Rousseau said:

Absolutely. 

 

We shouldn't be giving them these wages in the first place and, also, they should sold before they reach them in the general increase they get for the length of their stay. 

Yes, Barisic, Morelos, Tavernier, Kamara good examples of players we gave massive deals to extent and only

really made money on Kamara.

 

But for the Kamara thing: would It not have been smarter to sell him before the bumper new contract we gave him? Ultimately he ended up costing us a seasons wages on a hefty pay rise and didn’t contribute because he wanted a move. If we want to create a a player trading model we need the unwritten contract / track record with players and agents that we will be willing to move them on when they want to go rather than holding onto them for dear life like under Gerrard. 

 

(note i didn’t include Kent and he never extended Iirc)

Edited August 17 by Sutton_blows_goats

[Franc Ergs 1,528]

All goes to show that money does not guarantee quality.

 

 

[Rousseau 10,171]

Are you a Baseball fan, @Sutton_blows_goats?

[compo 6,663]

Another person's wages are of no concern to me