THE badge on the front will always be more important than the name on the back. For some, the weight that it carries can prove too great a burden. It is easier to play against Rangers than it is to play for Rangers.
It has happened before and it will happen again as a dream move turns into a nightmare. Michael O’Halloran is the latest case in point but the same could be said of many of those that joined him in heading out of the Ibrox exit door this summer.
His fine form for St Johnstone has led to Pedro Caixinha’s views on the forward being questioned in some quarters. But the Light Blues boss will stand by his decisions, and rightly so.
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O’Halloran picked up the Premiership Player of the Month prize last week after a storming start to the season for the Saints. Back in familiar territory and under the guidance of a manager he knows well, the 26-year-old is showcasing his talents and, for some, proving a point.
But there is a difference between playing well for St Johnstone and playing well for Rangers. O’Halloran had his chances at Ibrox and didn’t make the most of them.
Whether he was unable to handle the pressure and expectation, didn’t see eye-to-eye with his boss or just simply couldn’t perform, only he will know.
The same can be said for the likes of Barrie McKay and Joe Garner. It is easy for supporters to see their names popping up on the scoresheets for Nottingham Forest and Ipswich and wonder what might have been and why Caixinha let them leave.
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But neither performed at a high enough level, or on a consistent enough basis, last season to earn another crack at it under the Portuguese this term.
One eye-catching showing every couple of weeks won’t cut it at Ibrox, and ten goals from 34 appearances hardly justified a £1.8million transfer fee.
Martyn Waghorn could have done a job for the Gers but he needed to depart in search of regular first team football, while the likes of Rob Kiernan, Harry Forrester and Joe Dodoo can have no complaints about being allowed to leave.
There is no doubt that the squad that Caixinha has assembled has more quality and depth than the one that he inherited last season. It is up to the Portuguese to get the best out of it now.
The challenges that the likes of Fabio Cardoso, Carlos Pena and Daniel Candeias have to pass are the same ones that too many in Light Blue failed last season. If they don’t handle the demands, they won’t be in Glasgow for long.
It is the same on the other side of the city. Life in the Old Firm bubble is a unique experience and it takes a certain kind of character to thrive in it. When the pressure is on, you have to stand up and be counted, you have to ‘get it’.
Not every player can handle the transition and make the step up as the physical demands take their toll and the mental ones start to show.
A string of fine performances in our top flight may earn you a move to Rangers, but it takes many more to keep you in there.
There are a succession of players that have looked to be shrewd acquisitions for Rangers and Celtic over the years but then failed to deliver when they have been in blue or green.
More talented and more decorated players than the likes of O’Halloran have tried but not quite cut it. It is football’s own version of survival of the fittest.
Read more: Rangers 4-1 Dundee: Alfredo Morelos continues to lead the way for Pedro Caixinha's side
An unfulfilled spell at Ibrox will be a frustration and a disappointment, but there is life away from Rangers, as those that left in the summer are proving.
All are capable of having decent careers in the game and the fans that once chanted their names will surely wish them well in whatever lies ahead.
But they must also remember there is a reason why they are where they are in the first place. When the badge was on their chest, they couldn't deliver for Rangers.
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