Rangers boss ponders January clearout

Rangers boss Walter Smith has hinted he is preparing for a January clear-out of his squad.

Chairman Sir David Murray revealed last week he would only allow Smith to spend in the transfer window in an emergency.

But Smith is actually planning to reduce the size of his squad, which he hopes will also allow him to draft in reinforcements if necessary.

“There are 28 people in the senior squad and that is a big staff,” Smith told Rangers News.

“First and foremost, we must deal with that situation as we don’t need that many players and we have to address it.

“Understandably, some of the boys aren’t happy they’ve not been involved as regularly as they would wish.

“In all probability, our staff will be cut down more than anything else but that doesn’t stop us from looking at one or two positions we might need to fill as well.

“Obviously, we have to do that in conjunction with people who may leave in the January transfer window. It may well be we just go with the squad we have at the moment.”

Were Smith to bring players in, his priority would appear to lie in bolstering his roster of defenders.

Recent injuries have forced him to field forward Lee McCulloch at centre-back in recent games.

However, Smith has not ruled out McCulloch providing long-term cover in the position, while Andy Webster returns from a loan spell at Bristol City in January.

One player who could have been forgiven for fearing for his Rangers future in recent weeks was Jean-Claude Darcheville.

But the French forward has been given a vote of confidence by Smith after netting his first goal of the season in Saturday’s Clydesdale Bank Premier League victory over Aberdeen after a month out in the cold.