Steven Gerrard has once again urged the Rangers board to tie down Glen Kamara on an improved contract.
The bargain buy from Dundee still has two and a half years left on his Ibrox deal but Gerrard is concerned clubs will start sniffing around the Finland midfielder after another flawless Europa League display.
The 25-year-old helped an unfamiliar Gers line-up secure top spot in Group D with a 2-0 win at Lech Poznan.
Cedric Itten scored on his first European start while Ianis Hagi netted for the first time since August as he bundled home a rebound after Connor Goldson’s header came back off the crossbar.
But it is Kamara’s contract situation which is starting to concern the Ibrox boss.
He said: “I thought Glen Kamara again showed why everybody is talking about him and there’s a lot of fuss about him.
“I thought he was outstanding from start to finish and my advice to the club is to move that situation along as quickly as they can.”
There were also full Europa League debuts for Bongani Zungu and youngster Nathan Patterson.
The 19-year-old right-back has found game time hard to come by with leading player-of-the-year contender James Tavernier ahead of him.
But Gerrard believes working with the club captain every day will ensure Patterson only picks up good habits.
Asked if the Scotland Under-21 star needed more first-team minutes, he said: “I think that works both ways. He’s lucky to have Tav here because he’s got no one better to learn off and be a sponge around.
“When you’re at Nathan’s age, it’s about the daily routine of training. He’s up against the likes of Ryan Kent, Brandon Barker and Jordan Jones on a daily basis, who have got speed and quality.
“He’s up against the Aribos and Hagis, so his development is really important. He’s got a bright future.
“Tav is at an age where at some point, Nathan will take over that position but it’s great to have two really good right-backs to pick from.
“I thought his performance was strong considering it was his full debut at this level.
“He was one of numerous strong performances. Cedric’s performance epitomised what we were about as a team tonight, which was aggressive and controlled out of possession.
“The amount of regains and running he did for the team I thought was fantastic and I thought he deserved his goal. I hope he gets man of the match because it would certainly be deserved.
“I thought Zungu played with control and authority and real presence in the middle of the pitch. I was pleased with his display.”
