Rangers' £3.5m flop is becoming the new Matondo

Despite the Scottish transfer window closing at the start of February, Glasgow Rangers confirmed their permanent exit from the first-team squad at Ibrox on Tuesday.

The Light Blues have officially confirmed that Wales international Rabbi Matondo has left the club permanently to sign for Norway's SK Brann.

His contract at Ibrox was due to expire at the end of June, making him a free agent ahead of the summer transfer window, but the Gers have agreed to release him from his contract early.

That meant Brann was able to sign him on a free transfer this month to strengthen their squad for the Eliteserien campaign, rather than waiting until July to bring him in.

His exit on a free transfer also meant that Rangers did not recoup any of the £2.5m they paid Schalke to sign him on a permanent deal in the summer of 2022 under Giovani van Bronckhorst.

How Rabbi Matondo turned pale at Rangers

Matondo's biggest problem while playing with the Light Blues was his unavailability, due to persistent injury problems that prevented him from playing regular football.

In less than four seasons at Ibrox, the Wales international missed 58 games through injury in all competitions, picking up six injuries in that time.

The 25-year-old ended his time in Glasgow having never played more than 19 games in the Scottish Premiership campaign, while scoring eight goals and providing 11 assists in 70 appearances in all competitions.

His output in the final third when available hasn't been alarming, averaging a goal or assist every 3.69 games, but he hasn't played enough football to nail down a regular spot in the side.

Allowing him to leave on a free transfer, therefore, was the right decision because he did not give enough to the team, due to his absence, to guarantee a place in Danny Rohl's team.

Rangers flop who is fast becoming the new Rabi Matondo

So it is with the transfer market, however, there will always be flops and while one can leave, another can be signed, which is the case of Rangers.

Last summer, the Light Blues splashed out £3.5m to sign Finnish winger Oliver Antman from Go Ahead Eagles to bolster Russell Martin's squad.

So far, the Finn has scored one goal and provided four assists in 25 appearances across all competitions for the Gers this season, averaging a goal contribution every five games.

He scores and assists less than Matondo, who played a central role every 3.69 times, while playing as a defender.

Antman has only played 13 games in the Premiership this season, meaning he will have to feature in all seven of the remaining league games to play more games than Matondo did in the campaign.

As a Welsh forward, the former Go Ahead Eagles player has struggled with injuries, missing more than a month of football due to an injury he picked up in January.

Although he has returned to fitness in the past few months, Antman is still struggling to play regularly in the Premiership. He has been an unused substitute in five of the last ten Premiership games under Rohl.

The 24-year-old striker, who played twice for Finland during the international break, has not started a league game since the 0-0 draw with Falkirk in November.

Therefore, Antman is becoming the new Matondo at Ibrox because he is injured and was not used to being called up by his manager in the league, and he was not playing well in the first place when he was selected.

The right-footed flop's lack of game time, while fit, in recent months does not bode well for his future in Glasgow beyond next summer's transfer window, as he could be forced to consider his options.

On current evidence, Antman already looks finished at Ibrox, due to his lack of quality work and game time, and it will be interesting to see what happens to his form in the summer.

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