Sport
Souness hits back at Simon Jordan’s Rangers jibe with £100m argument
Graeme Souness would like to see Rangers and Celtic compete in the English Premier League, believing it would also help breathe new life into Scottish football.
The age-old debate regarding whether the Old Firm pair could ever realistically hold their own south of the border was raised by Simon Jordan on talkSPORT’s Simon & Souness podcast [5 February, 12m 16s].
Souness said he would “100 per cent” like to see Rangers and Celtic in the Premier League, to which Jordan argued it would “kill Scottish football” and that the pair would perhaps struggle.
In response to that, Souness said: “Their income from television right now is circa £3million. Bournemouth, where I live, are getting £100m.
“Right now the top two in Scotland dominate, and there’s nothing on the horizon to suggest that’s going to change. The other teams could get into the Champions League instead.
“Rangers and Celtic are supported worldwide. If they were to operate down here, they could build a stadium for 100,000 people and there’d still be a queue of people outside waiting to come in.”
Rangers and Celtic Premier League point raised again
Neil Warnock’s appointment at Aberdeen, and whether or not the experienced manager can make a success of things in Scotland, has led to this debate being discussed publicly again.
Ally McCoist and Jeff Stelling had their say on the matter earlier on Monday (5 February), and now Jordan and Souness have done likewise.
Souness, like McCoist, is well positioned to discuss the topic having played for and managed the Gers. And Souey is spot on to point out the minute funds available to Rangers and Celtic compared to the English elite.
If Rangers can reach a Europa League final with their relatively limited budget, just imagine what is possible if a couple of £15m+ players are brought in.
That is not to downplay the quality of the vast majority of sides in England’s top flight, but would Rangers – even right now, with their paltry TV income – struggle to hold their own against the likes of Sheffield United and Burnley?
It is very much a moot point, though, as this is not something that will happen any time soon, if ever.
