To say it has been a turbulent time at Rangers as of late would be an understatement. Following the Gers' poor start to the season, which included a Champions League thrashing at the hands of PSV Eindhoven and a disappointing Old Firm derby defeat against Celtic, Michael Beale was relieved of his duties. This allowed for the arrival of Philippe Clement, who now has the task of turning things around at Ibrox.
The former AS Monaco manager's first task must be to put an end to the negative noise surrounding his side, turning morale around and defeats into victories in the process. One thing that will not have helped towards achieving that task are the comments recently made by Nicolas Raskin.
What did Nicolas Raskin say?
The latest Raskin transfer news has been initiated by the player himself, who commented on his future ambitions. And whilst the chaos of Rangers' poor start continues to unfold at Ibrox, such comments will only add fuel to the flames burning the Gers' slowly fading title chances in the Scottish Premiership.
Raskin told La Tribune, via Football Scotland: "I am now at 98 games for Standard, surely it would be nice to one day round that 100 mark there. One day I want to play in the Premier League, but I don’t put pressure on myself. I have a plan in my head, Rangers is just a stage in that. Rangers was the best choice at that time to realise my plan."
Reacting to the news, Frank McAvennie slammed Raskin, telling Football Insider: "You cannot say that, the fans will not accept it, shut your mouth. Rangers are not anybody’s stepping stone. He has got to start doing it on the pitch before he starts mouthing off because if you can’t do it in Scotland then you are certainly not going to do it down in England.
"Prove on the pitch that you are better than what you think you are, show the fans that you care about them and the club and then the fans will be behind you. If you are not doing it on the pitch then it is just stupid, the clubs in England are not going to want you if you are not doing it in Scotland.“
How has Nicolas Raskin performed this season?
When it comes to Raskin's stats, he has certainly been one of the consistent features for Rangers this season, starting in all but two games in the Scottish Premiership. With the Gers struggling, however, that stat may not reflect too well on the 22-year-old, who has one assist in 11 appearances in all competitions so far in the current campaign.
His recent comments won't exactly please new boss Clement, either. The recent arrival will have plenty of important decisions to make, and the less negative headlines surrounding his players, the better, making Raskin's words all the more frustrating. From now on, the midfielder may look to get his talking done on the pitch, rather than causing controversy away from it, perhaps avoiding the wrath of McAvennie and other media members in the process.