'Amazed' - Youngster who previously made 'Shock' Rangers exit to PL speaks out on move

Rangers academy product Dire Mebude has no regrets over leaving the club for Manchester City and would do the same thing again despite not breaking through at The Etihad.

The Scotland Under-21 international told The Herald on 13 October that his “shock” departure to the English giants was a “no-brainer” and for his development it was the right move.

The now-20-year-old left Glasgow in 2020 and has since moved on to Westerlo in Belgium, while spending time on loan with Bristol City last season, and believes the Scottish national side will reap the rewards from players increasingly making similar moves.

He said: “Yeah, definitely. I think that has set me up the best for my career.

“It came as quite a shock when I heard they were interested in me. But when I heard that they wanted to sign me, it was like a no-brainer at that point to be honest. I just couldn’t hold my excitement, I just wanted to get there as soon as possible.

“You obviously know it’s going to be tough to eventually make your way to the first team, but for me, it’s the best club in the world. It’s not just about the first team, it’s about developing yourself as a player really. They’ve got the best facilities and the best players. It’s good to be a part of when you’re young and trying to develop yourself.

“I was just amazed when I walked in there on my first day. Rangers have a great facility as well, don’t get me wrong, and there are great coaches there too. But Manchester City is one of the best places you can be. I was just happy to get it done really.”

Dire Mebude now at Westerlo after Rangers exit

A player who leaves the Light Blues as a teenager is taking a gamble but given the success at City in the Pep Guardiola era it would be hard for anyone to turn it down.

But if the risk of not making the grade at Ibrox is high it is comparatively off the charts at the Premier League champions.

Whether Mebude makes it to the top after bouncing around over the past couple of years remains to be seen, but it is probably no surprise that he would make the same decision again now anyway.

There has been very little evidence of a pathway from the academy to the first team under successive managers, with Ross McCausland the only one featuring with any regularity under Philippe Clement.

The likes of Alex Lowry and Leon King appeared to have made the breakthrough under Giovanni van Bronckhorst but both are expected to leave in the near future [Chris Jack, 11 October].

The next generation of Bailey Rice, Zak Lovelace and company are struggling to get a look in for the first-team, when Rice was arguably the more highly-rated prospect when he left Motherwell compared to Gers-linked sensation Lennon Miller, so players in that position likely would jump at the opportunity offered to Mebude.

He will hope to ultimately emulate Billy Gilmour, who suffered some set backs after his exit to Chelsea but has become a Scotland regular and joined Serie A giants Napoli from Brighton in the summer.

And until Light Blues youngsters can see evidence of a way to first-team football at Ibrox they might generally be minded to snap up the chance of world class facilities in the Premier League despite the increased competition.

In other Rangers news, Lawrence Shankland looks like he could finally be on the way to Ibrox.

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