The feel-good factor returned to Ibrox in 2021 as Glasgow Rangers finally overtook their opponents.
Rangers had a clear objective, and the supporters could see what they were aiming to achieve, even though it might have taken a few years to finally eliminate Celtic’s supremacy of Scotting football.
This resulted in the Ibrox team winning the 2020–21 Premiership title under former manager Steven Gerrard, who ended the Hoops’ attempt to win ten straight league titles by leading the team to an undefeated season.
Gerrard also had an outstanding record versus the Parkhead team. The Gers only suffered three losses to their opponents between August 2018 and his departure, which occurred just over three years later.
With the addition of players like Joe Aribo, Ryan Kent, and Connor Goldson, Gerrard was able to bolster the team’s spine, which made an impression both at home and abroad.
He was able to make the occasional bad acquisition, though, as a number of players didn’t live up to the expectations when they first arrived at Ibrox.
The worst Rangers acquisitions made by Steven Gerrard The first name that comes to me is Eros Grezda. The Albanian winger signed a four-year contract in 2018 for an estimated £2 million.
After spitting during a reserve team game, the winger was sold in January 2020 after making just 17 appearances for the squad and scoring twice.
Another bad addition was Umar Sadiq. The striker left after only a few months after failing to score in four games while on loan from AS Roma. Others, like Cedric Itten, Bongani Zungu, and George Edmundson, showed a lot of promise but were unable to make an impact at the club.
However, Brandon Barker, a former Manchester City youth standout who joined the Gers in the summer of 2019, was arguably one of his worst acquisitions.
The Rangers’ Brandon Barker stats Barker made one FA Cup appearance for Man City in the 2015–16 season, however it would be his sole appearance for the squad as he went on a string of loans to earn a spot in the first team.
One was in Scotland, where he played for Hibs during the 2017–18 season and contributed seven goals to the Easter Road team during a strong run.
When Liverpool U21s played Man City U21s, Trent Alexander-Arnold even lauded Barker, calling him his toughest opponent in the past.
Brandon Barker, I believe, was a member of City. I lost 3-0 when playing for the Under-21s for the first time at Anfield. He received an assist and scored two goals. “I left at sixty minutes. He’s still the opponent who, in my opinion, completely demolished me, dude. It has never been that way for me. “This kid is going to be the best player in the world,” I think at that moment. because I had never witnessed someone move that swiftly, deftly, and efficiently.
Barker only made 13 appearances for the Light Blues in the 2019–20 season due to inconsistency, which resulted in just one goal.
He failed to live up to the potential that allowed him to defeat Trent during his time with City U21s, and it was evident that he had little to offer moving ahead.
Despite this, Barker stayed in Glasgow before the upcoming record-breaking 2020–21 season, but he was clearly the team’s weak link. The winger scored twice in the Premiership, but Gerrard only let him loose 13 times in the first half of the season. He ultimately signed a loan agreement with Oxford United in January that would last until the conclusion of the season.
After Gerrard left, he somehow found a way to stay at Ibrox, making one appearance in the Scottish Cup under Giovanni Van Bronckhorst.
Shortly later, six months before his contract at Ibrox was about to expire, the Englishman was dismissed. Barker only made 27 appearances for the Glasgow team overall, and he only managed to score three goals.
Indeed, throughout his tenure at the club, Gerrard signed a few blinkers, but Barker’s testimony shows that he was also prone to the occasional howler.
After departing the Rangers, Brandon Barker’s time Barker made just four appearances for the Royals in the Championship after signing a short-term contract with Reading shortly after leaving Rangers. That summer, the former City player joined Cypriot team Omonia Nicosia in preparation for the 2022–2023 season, which took place on continental shores.
With one goal and one assist in 17 league games, the 28-year-old undoubtedly looked promising during his time in Cyprus. Even though it wasn’t at the best level, Barker had the opportunity to re-establish himself, especially since he was getting close to his prime. It turned out to be a false dawn, as he was released in the summer after a stint at League Two team Morecambe FC produced just two professional games.
Since it appears that no one wants to wager on the winger, who once had the world at his feet, Barker has not yet found a new club as of this writing.
Barker lost the brilliance that made him stand out for City U21s as the years passed, and he became a minor player at Ibrox until his career took a plunge after departing, appearing in just 31 games since January 2022. He has obviously missed any chance to perform at the best level. Can he find another club before the current campaign ends? That is the question. Time will tell.
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