Glasgow Rangers boss Michael Beale was backed throughout the summer transfer window as the board allowed him to make nine new signings for his first-team squad, which included eight permanent additions.
However, those who helped him to make those acquisitions are losing their jobs.
Why are Rangers changing their recruitment team?
The Daily Record recently reported that the club have 'kicked off' an overhaul of their recruitment department in order to catch up with other top European clubs.
They have moved on a number of their scouts and are now set to implement a system that relies on video and data alongside more traditional scouting, instead of being almost solely reliant on the eye test.
The report also revealed that Beale has made a 'big thing' about refusing to sign any player unless he has gone to watch them in the flesh.
Cyriel Dessers
Permanent
Danilo
Permanent
Sam Lammers
Permanent
Jose Cifuentes
Permanent
Kieran Dowell
Permanent
Dujon Sterling
Permanent
Leon Balogun
Permanent
Jack Butland
Permanent
Abdallah Sima
Loan
These are the players who the English head coach snapped up this summer after watching them play in person and a number of them have already had difficult starts to their respective careers at Ibrox.
One player who has had a worrying start to life in Glasgow is Nigeria international Cyriel Dessers as the centre-forward has already failed the Gers boss big time.
How much did Rangers pay for Dessers?
The Light Blues reportedly agreed an initial £4.5m deal, along with further undisclosed add-ons, with Italian side Cremonese to secure his services on a four-year contract.
He arrived in Scotland off the back of scoring six goals in 26 Serie A appearances during the 2022/23 campaign, in which time he also lost a whopping 70% of his physical duels, as per Sofascore.
His time in Italy came after an impressive spell on loan with Feyenoord the previous term. Dessers produced an outstanding 19 goals in 16 Eredivisie and Europa Conference League starts combined.
However, the former Genk number nine was not able to replicate his stunning form in the Netherlands with Cremonese and is yet to showcase a lethal touch in Scotland.
How many goals has Dessers scored for Rangers?
The 28-year-old marksman has scored two goals in nine competitive appearances so far for the Light Blues and appears to be on his way to being Cedric Itten 2.0 for the club.
Some Rangers supporters have voiced their concerns over Abdallah Sima's performances in Scotland since his loan move from Brighton & Hove Albion but the 22-year-old has certainly offered more than the ex-Cremonese forward.
The Seagulls loanee has averaged a Sofascore rating of 7.05 and chipped in with one goal across four Scottish Premiership outings this term. He has also showcased a willingness to get stuck in to adapt to the physicality of the division with a ground duel success rate of 55%, which shows that the young gem has not been bullied by opposition defenders.
Sima also recorded a Sofascore rating of 7.20 and scored one goal, which was a beautiful strike from distance, in his one appearance against PSV in their Champions League play-off clash.
Dessers, on the other hand, has endured a rough start to life in the Premiership. He has averaged a less-than-impressive Sofascore rating of 6.70 over four starts to date, which is the 18th-best score within the squad – out of 21 players.
The Nigerian dynamo has missed four 'big chances' and failed to score a single goal or provide an assist for his teammates in those matches, whilst the experienced forward has also lost a staggering 82% of his ground duels so far, as per Sofascore.
His two goals came from the penalty spot against Greenock Morton in the League Cup and against Servette in a Champions League qualifier in August.
Despite an impressive assist for Rabbi Matondo in the first leg, Dessers also struggled across the two clashes with PSV which ultimately led to Rangers failing to qualify for the group stages. He averaged a dismal Sofascore rating of 6.45 over the two games as he lost 78% of his duels and 81% of his battles on the ground.
The former Serie A marksman's poor Sofascore rating ranked him 14th out of 17 players within the squad and these poor numbers, domestically and in Europe, show that he has failed Beale big time after a big-money move to Ibrox.
His lacklustre form for Rangers throughout the 2023/24 campaign so far suggests that the 6 foot 1 forward is already on his way to being the next Itten, who previously struggled himself at Ibrox.
How many goals did Itten score for Rangers?
The Switzerland international, who was signed from St Gallen for a reported fee of £2.7m in 2020, only managed eight goals in 48 appearances during his time in Scotland.
He only produced four goals in 27 Premiership matches for Rangers as the Swiss centre-forward struggled badly after a multi-million-pound switch.
Itten also failed to deal with the physicality of Scottish football as he lost 69% of his duels during the 2020/21 league campaign and then came out worse off in 74% of his battles throughout the 2021/22 season before eventually being moved on to Young Boys in 2022.
The 26-year-old did not provide a regular goal threat through the middle of the pitch and let his side down by allowing himself to be dominated by opposition defenders due to his lack of physical strength, which is why he was a flop at Ibrox.
Dessers, who was described as a "menace" by journalist Josh Bunting for his form with Feyenoord, could now sadly follow in the Swiss attacker's footsteps.
The £4.5m signing has unfortunately let Beale down with his weak centre-forward play and lack of goals, with one open-play strike in nine outings and zero in four league clashes.
Defenders are finding it far too easy to deal with the summer signing and his lack of physicality does not appear to be a new issue for him, as shown by his aforementioned statistics with Cremonese in Italy.
Evidently, Dessers has not only been worse than Sima but also looks set to be Itten 2.0 for Rangers.
