SPL: Rangers Arveladze unafraid of competition

New Rangers signing Shota Arveladze has been told he must fight for his place in the starting line-up with the club’s seven other senior strikers.

Rangers are understood to have paid around £3million for Ajax’s Georgian international hitman, who had been in dispute with the Amsterdam club over a new contract.

Rangers manager Dick Advocaat moved swiftly to bring him to Ibrox once it became clear that Don Hutchison was on his way to West Ham, and not Glasgow, from Sunderland.

Arveladze said: ‘‘I’ve had a good chat with Dick Advocaat. He was very honest with me.

‘‘I’m not afraid of the tough competition for places at Rangers. I’ll have to fight for my place in the first team, just like the other strikers.’’

There will certainly be no shortage of competition for the 28-year-old, who is now on international duty with his country.

Advocaat has already spent £25million in bringing attacking players Tore Andre Flo, Claudio Caniggia, Michael Mols, Kenny Miller, Billy Dodds and Ronald de Boer plus freebie Russell Latapy to Ibrox.

The Georgian is ineligible for the UEFA Cup campaign however, having played, and scored, against Celtic in a Champions League qualifier.

Miller is expected to ease the Ibrox congestion in the next few days by going on loan to an English club. Negotiations have already taken place with First Division side Wolves.

Dodds is on duty with Scotland as Craig Brown’s squad prepares for a World Cup double header with Croatia and Belgium.

He could well start both games and Brown organised a practice match with the Under-18 squad to sharpen his match-fitness.

But when he returns he will surely be even further down the pecking order now Arveladze has arrived and may finally opt to seek a new club.