Glasgow Rangers head coach Danny Rohl has just over a month to go until he will have the opportunity to make his first signing since arriving at Ibrox to replace Russell Martin.
The German tactician came through the door well after the summer transfer window had been and gone, after sporting director Kevin Thelwell provided Martin with a host of signings.
Rangers, as shown in the graphic above, had a high turnover of players in and out of Ibrox after they failed to win any trophies in the 2024/25 campaign, under Philippe Clement or Barry Ferguson.
Unfortunately, though, Martin was unable to get a tune out of the squad after those changes in the summer and was eventually sacked last month after a run of five wins in 17 games.
With Rohl now in the building, the former Sheffield Wednesday head coach will have time to assess those summer signings and decide where he wants the club to strengthen the squad when the January transfer window opens.
One of those Martin and Thelwell signings whom the manager may deem needs to be replaced in the winter is experienced central midfielder Joe Rothwell.
Why Rangers need to replace Joe Rothwell already
Rangers swooped to sign the 30-year-old midfielder from Premier League side Bournemouth on a permanent deal during the summer window for Martin, who had worked with him on loan at Southampton in the 2023/24 campaign.
Unfortunately, the English lightweight has flopped at Ibrox, on current evidence, and is yet to play a single minute of action in the Scottish Premiership since Rohl came through the door.
He was ill and unavailable for selection against Dundee last time out, but the midfield flop was an unused substitute in the wins over Kilmarnock and Hibernian in the manager’s first two matches in the dugout.
This means that Rangers have now won one of the eight league matches he has played in and won all three of the games that he has not featured in so far this season.
25/26 Premiership
Rothwell
Percentile rank vs CMs
Tackles
7
Bottom 29%
Interceptions
8
Top 29%
Duels won
16
Bottom 27%
Duel success rate
47%
Bottom 37%
Aerial duels won
4
Bottom 29%
Possession won in the final third
1
Bottom 18%
Ball recoveries
22
Bottom 40%
Stats via FotMob
As you can see in the table above, Rothwell has struggled off the ball throughout the Premiership campaign, ranking poorly among his positional peers in the majority of the key defensive metrics, aside from interceptions.
On top of his defensive woes, the Englishman has no goals and one assist in eight appearances in the league, per Sofascore, which shows that he has not offered outstanding quality on the ball to make up for his defensive deficiencies.
This is why Rohl may already be considering replacing Rothwell in the January transfer window, and why the midfielder has been an unused substitute in the last two league games that he has been available for.
Rangers eyeing move for Premiership midfielder
The Scottish Premiership giants may be able to replace the former Bournemouth and Southampton flop amid reported interest in a star who plays in his position.
According to TEAMtalk, Rangers are one of the clubs exploring the possibility of a deal to snap up Kilmarnock central midfielder David Watson in the January transfer window.
The report claims that the Light Blues are in talks over a possible move for the Scotland U21 international, whose contract is due to expire at the end of the season.
It reveals that Rohl is a big fan of the midfield starlet and wants to add him to his squad in the winter market, with the Gers looking to seal a cut-price deal due to his contract situation.
However, TEAMtalk adds that Hearts, Aberdeen, and unnamed clubs in the English Championship are also keen on signing the £1.5m-rated Kilmarnock star, which means that there is plenty of competition for his signature.
Why Watson would be an upgrade on Rothwell for Rangers
Thelwell could land a huge upgrade on Rothwell for Rohl if he is able to beat the likes of Aberdeen and Hearts to the signing of Watson ahead of the second half of the season.
For a start, the Scotland U21 international is ten years younger than the English flop. He has far more years left ahead of him to develop as a player and offer quality on the pitch for Rangers than Rothwell does.
This also means that there is the potential for his value to grow so that he could be sold on for a profit in the future, like a Hamza Igamane or Calvin Bassey, and that may not be the case with the Bournemouth man, as he is in the latter stages of his career.
In terms of the here and now, Watson could come in as an upgrade on Rothwell from an offensive perspective. The Scottish star has scored three goals in 12 Premiership matches this season, after netting four last term, with the Rangers dud yet to get off the mark at Ibrox.
The Scotland U21 international, who Kilmarnock commentator Andrew Milligan claimed has “no ceiling”, would also come in and offer a huge upgrade on the English flop defensively.
25/26 Premiership
David Watson
Joe Rothwell
Appearances
12
8
Tackles + interceptions per game
3.1
1.9
Clearances per game
0.9
0.1
Duels won per game
6.0
2.0
Ground duel success rate
51%
46%
Fouls won per game
2.3
0.1
Blocks per game
0.5
0.1
Stats via Sofascore
As you can see in the table above, Watson has excelled out of possession in comparison to Rothwell in the 2025/26 campaign, making far more defensive contributions at a more efficient rate.
It is, therefore, easy to understand why Rohl is such a big fan of the Kilmarnock star and why he wants Thelwell to get a deal over the line for him when the January transfer window opens.
Watson’s offensive and defensive statistics suggest that he would arrive at Ibrox as a huge upgrade on Rothwell, who has struggled since his move to the club, and provide the likes of Connor Barron, Nico Raskin, and Mo Diomande with genuine competition for the midfield spots.
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