Rangers told to make a move for hotshot midfielder after Arsenal emergence.
Rangers have been told to consider an ambitious loan move for Arsenal’s teenage sensation Max Dowman in January following their success with Mikey Moore last season.
Dowman, 16, has exploded onto the scene at the Emirates over the last 12 months after making his debut for the North London giants in a 5-0 win over Leeds United last August. He went on to make a further 13 appearances for the club last season, scoring a clinching goal in a 2-0 home win over Everton on the way to winning the title.
He hit the headlines again earlier this month when he was named man of the match after he scored twice in a 4-2 Carabao Cup win over Ipswich Town. Dowman has barely featured outside of that game, though, and former Rangers striker Mark Hateley believes Rangers could provide him with a platform to showcase his skills, akin to what they did with Moore last season when he joined on loan from Tottenham Hotspur.
Rangers found success in the loan market last season with the signing of Mikey Moore from Tottenham Hotspur, who is now made a similar move to FC Koln.placeholder image
Rangers found success in the loan market last season with the signing of Mikey Moore from Tottenham Hotspur, who is now made a similar move to FC Koln. | Getty Images
Sign up to The Scotsman’s daily football newsletter to get unrivalled Scottish football news and analysis - subscribe for free here.
“Max is in a similar situation [to Moore], said Hateley. “Danny Rohl found a way to play him and get the best out of Mikey Moore at Rangers. I think Derek McInnes would see the good habits he brings from Arsenal, and hopefully he would have a similar impact to what Mikey did from January onwards.
“That's what football is crying out for now – ballcarriers. Players like Paul Gascoigne, who carry the ball forward and release players ahead of them. I think Max is a similar sort of player, and the game time would do him a lot of good. Coming up to Scotland would toughen him up.”
The former Rangers striker, whose son Tom played for both Motherwell and Dundee during his own playing career, believes talented young players should look to make temporary moves away from their parent club if they aren’t able to get games regular. Hateley believes Moore, who joined FC Koln on loan this summer after scoring seven goals and assisted a further four at Ibrox last season, is a perfect example of how regular first team football can help younger players progress, and wants Dowman to follow a similar path.
“I went through this with my son when he was down at Reading,” Hateley told NetBet Casino. “He was in the same youth team as Alex McCarthy [current Leicester City goalkeeper] and a couple of others being moved up to the first team. My son was 17, Alex was 18, and Steve Coppell told my son he wanted him to stay another year and captain the youth team again.
The former Rangers striker, whose son Tom played for both Motherwell and Dundee, believes talented young players should seek temporary moves away from their parent club if they aren’t playing regularly. Hateley believes Moore, who joined FC Koln on loan this summer after scoring seven goals and assisting a further four at Ibrox last season, is a perfect example of how regular first-team football can help young talents progress faster, and wants Dowman to follow a similar path.
“I was playing in the first team at Coventry as a left winger at that age to get games under my belt, so I said to Steve, ‘youth football's no good for my son right now, he's 16 going on 17, built like a man, ready to play against men’." Steve said they didn't think so. I said, ‘Well, release him then.’ A week later they phoned and agreed.
“I took him to Tranmere, he played there, then went up to Motherwell, played as a full-back because the regular full-back got injured in the warm-up, played well, stayed there, and then went off to Europe. That's what young players should be doing, going to play. Max Dowman could sit on the bench, train, play in the Carabao Cup, but there's nothing like actually playing. Go and play.”