Rangers already found their next Jack Butland as ‘incredible’ £1.5m goalkeeper shines in England

Jack Butland of Rangers FC warms up prior to the UEFA Europa League 2024/25 Round of 16 First Leg match between Fenerbahce SK and Rangers FC.

Rangers already found their next Jack Butland as ‘incredible’ £1.5m goalkeeper shines in England

Jack Butland, to quote Jose Mourinho, was ‘fantastic’ as Rangers took one giant stride towards the quarter-finals of the Europa League away to Fenerbahce last week.

 

After the debacle that was Rangers’ 2-1 home defeat to Motherwell a few days earlier – an early blunder had many Ibrox fans urging Barry Ferguson to make Liam Kelly his first-choice goalkeeper – this was certainly one way to quieten the critics.

 

 

 

Yet, thanks to Jack Butland’s alarming dip in form since Christmas, the former England international has guaranteed himself a permanent place under the spotlight.

 

If his horror mistake to gift Adam Idah a stoppage-time winner in May’s Scottish Cup final could be forgiven – Rangers were a damsel in near-constant distress and Butland was always on hand to answer their call throughout 2023/24 – the sheer number of errors in such a short space of time this season has seen the faith in him severely shaken.

 

So, as Butland rose to the occasion to frustrate Fenerbahce, this felt like a timely reminder of the qualities he still possesses.

 

READ MORE: Who is Jack Butland? Inside the life of the super Rangers No1 goalkeeper

Photo by Athena Pictures/Getty Images

 

Photo by Athena Pictures/Getty Images

Doubts over Jack Butland’s longevity after Rangers blunders

”I know that Butland makes three fantastic saves,” Mourinho sighed, a genuine moment in a press conference full of half-truths and mind-games.

 

Yet, one fine night in Istanbul will count for very little in the long run unless Butland can permanently cut out the sort of errors which gift-wrapped goals to St Mirren, Manchester United and Motherwell, to name but three.

 

 

Butland turned 32 on Monday. And while that is still relatively young for a goalkeeper, the fact is that further lapses in concentration which bring about serious questions over his longevity.

 

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Is the time approaching for Rangers to start looking at younger, quicker, more long-term solutions between the sticks? And, if so, where do they start?

 

Well, perhaps by looking back to the summer of 2023.

 

Before Butland moved north of the border from Crystal Palace, Rangers reportedly sent scouts to watch Ivor Pandur in action for Eredivisie outfit Fortuna Sittard.

 

The former Croatia Under-21 international had enjoyed a phenomenal breakout campaign in the Netherlands. And, while Pandur registered on Rangers’ radar before the appointment of now-technical director Nils Koppen, the 24-year-old is a player the former PSV Eindhoven scout should know well.

 

Two years on, Pandur has proven himself capable of making the always tricky step up from Dutch to British football. He is approaching the end of his second season with Hull City. And while Ruben Selles’ team are still very much at risk of relegation, that Hull have the second-best defensive record in the Championship’s bottom half despite sitting 17th owes much to their cat-like Croatian.

 

Ivor Pandur’s Hull City displays should catch Rangers’ eye

Pandur was nothing short of heroic as Hull earned a battling 1-1 draw with Bristol City last weekend despite being reduced to ten men inside 15 minutes.

 

One magnificent top-hand stop to deny Scott Twine was reminiscent of Butland’s old Manchester United team-mate David de Gea, with The Robins needing a penalty to beat him in the end.

 

 

It was, to quote Not the Top 20 podcast co-host Ali Maxwell, an ‘incredible’ virtuoso display. The type of which Butland made his trademark – particularly in Europe – during a largely error-free debut season at Rangers.

 

Given that Rangers tend to dominate possession domestically, it would be handy if any Butland successor is pretty reliable with the ball at his feet.

 

Pandur, interestingly, has attempted the most passes of any goalkeeper in the Championship this season with the shortest average length too. Clearly, as part of Hull’s gameplan, Pandur is tasked with building play patiently from the back.

 

The former Rijeka and Hellas Verona man also scores pretty highly with regards to claiming crosses and sweeping up effectively outside of his area.

 

Pandur is a confident, forward-thinking, proactive goalkeeper. The type of which more modern-run clubs tend to prioritise in the transfer market these days.

 

“Ivor is a player with really good pedigree,” ex-Hull coach Liam Rosenior said following his £1.5 million arrival on Humberside. “He’s got a lot of potential and many qualities. He’s an outstanding shot-stopper with agility and plays with personality.

 

“Ivor’s already a leader at such a young age and made a big impression with Fortuna Sittard and their fans during his time in the Netherlands.”

 

Back in 2023, there would have been a lot of concerns raised had Rangers entrusted a 22-year-old from a lower-level Eredivisie club to fill the sizeable mitts of Allan McGregor.

 

Two years later, with two years more experience under his belt and another veteran shot-stopper facing questions over his future, Ivor Pandur may just be worth a closer look.