Derek McInnes Confident in Lawrence Shankland's Role at Rangers

Derek McInnes insists Lawrence Shankland will be a central figure at Rangers this season – whether he is in the starting XI or not.

The Rangers manager, who made Shankland his captain at Hearts and handed him the armband again when both moved to Ibrox in the summer, has watched his new skipper endure a slow start in Govan. On Sunday, the Scotland striker dropped to the bench for the 5-1 League Cup win over St Mirren, with Nico Raskin leading the team out instead.

That was enough to spark questions. McInnes batted them away.

Armband doesn’t guarantee a place

"I said that when I spoke to Lawrence. Being captain does not guarantee anything, and he accepted that," McInnes explained ahead of Thursday’s UEFA Conference League play-off first leg against Jablonec at Ibrox.

"He is not going to stamp his feet about it. Somebody has to be club captain and, having worked with Lawrence before, he is a brilliant captain and a brilliant boy."

Shankland has yet to ignite in front of goal in domestic action for Rangers. His only strike so far came from the penalty spot against Jagiellonia in a Europa League qualifier. Against St Mirren he was introduced for only his second substitute appearance of the campaign and again left without adding to that tally.

McInnes is unmoved by the early numbers.

"He has a lot to offer. People can maybe look too much into it," he said. "You want your captain to have a big influence on and off the pitch, and I believe Lawrence will have that. For me, it is a non-question, although I understand why people might see more in it."

Faith in a proven finisher

Rangers did not sign Shankland for his pressing statistics or link-up play alone. They signed him because he has lived in the penalty box for years and punished defences across the Premiership.

"When you have a player like Lawrence, who knows his way around the penalty box and how to score goals, I do not worry too much about it," McInnes said.

"He is too good not to score regularly. He has consistently shown that over a period of time in the Premiership, with 20-odd goals a season at Hearts. Sometimes people can overemphasise these things.

"For me, it is a case of letting him play his natural game. The best strikers have that instinctive side to their game, where everything looks natural and seamless. I have no doubt he will do well here."

The message is clear: the captaincy is not a shield from rotation, but neither is a quiet August a reason to doubt a striker with Shankland’s record. With European qualification and a title race looming, Rangers will need his goals soon enough.

Nedeljkovic adds fresh energy at right-back

While debate swirled around Shankland’s role, Rangers moved again in the transfer market. Earlier in the day, the club confirmed the arrival of Kosta Nedeljkovic from Aston Villa on a season-long loan, with an obligation to buy.

The 20-year-old Serbia international becomes McInnes’ 11th signing of a busy summer and will battle Dujon Sterling and Ross McCrorie for the right-back slot.

"It was a position we identified at the start of pre-season. We looked at various options," McInnes said. "The club had been reliant on Dujon, who has had his history of injuries, so we wanted to bring in a different type of full-back.

"I've got a high opinion of Dujon, but with Kosta you get a player similar to Vanja in a full-back position: real enthusiasm, athleticism and the ability to get up and down the pitch.

"He shows good quality and a real eagerness to play the role. As a young player, there will still be areas to improve, but we're looking forward to helping him develop."

A captain finding his rhythm, a new full-back eager to run the line, and a European play-off under the lights at Ibrox – McInnes has his pieces. Now comes the real test of how quickly they can click.