Liverpool starlet Ryan Kent was magnificent during his loan spell at Rangers last season, earning the plaudits of his manager Steven Gerrard, former Liverpool player himself. This summer, Kent has returned to Liverpool but Rangers are hoping they can convince Liverpool to get Ryan Kent for another campaign. But with Jurgen Klopp also being a fan of the winger, it is still not clear where his future lies.
The 22-year old is already under contract with Liverpool since he was seven years old but has been involved in many loan deals in the last years. He started off his loan career at Coventry during the 2015/2016 campaign, moving to Barnsley the following season. Kent then played half a season at Freiburg but only managed in getting six appearances. During the winter break, he moved to Bristol City where he played in eleven games. Last season, he finally had his big break-through at the Rangers.
Now the question is whether he is going to get his chance to compete with players like Sadio Mané, Ben Woodburn, Xherdan Shaqiri and Mohamed Salah or if he is going on a fifth loan agreement. It’s no secret that Rangers hope to bring Ryan Kent back to Ibrox after his impressive performances last season. Now that Daniel Candeias has moved to Genclerbirligi, there is even more pressure on Rangers to convince Kent to stay for another year.
Who knows? Maybe one day he can move back to Liverpool together with his current manager Steven Gerrard. Ex-Spurs and Liverpool star Danny Murphy has already hinted that he sees Gerrard as the perfect replacement for when Klopp decides to move back to Germany. Murphy thinks Klopp might manage Bayern Munich in the future, but probably not until someone like Gerrard is ready to take over at Liverpool.
Kent Joins the Party
We now know that since this article first appeared, Ryan Kent has made a permanent switch to the Gers. In four years at Liverpool, the winger had just that solitary first-team appearance to show for his endeavours and the move to Ibrox seems a logical one. Reports on the fee vary but most agree that Rangers have paid £6.5 million upfront with further funds expected to change hands based on appearances and achievements.
More game time is the promise from the club and manager Steven Gerrard but while Ryan Kent is firmly in the frame as far as a first-team starting berth is concerned, his switch to Glasgow has been a frustrating one so far.
In fact, it all started out as a bit of a nightmare with Kent injuring a hamstring on his second Rangers debut. After taking two months out, the player returned for the Europa League tie against Porto and was his usual impressive self. The manager confirmed that Kent was only around ‘80 to 90% fit’ so clearly the best is yet to come.
The Gap Narrows
While Rangers have one eye on that European campaign, the real aim is to win Scotland’s domestic top-flight league once again. Gerrard’s men have been matching Celtic point for point and while the majority of expert predictions suggest this isn’t the year, it surely is just a matter of time before Rangers are returned to the top table.
At the age of just 22, Ryan Kent has a big part to play in the future and, following that impressive initial loan spell, Gers fans will be delighted that he’s now on board on a full-time basis.
