England officially confirmed the appointment of Thomas Tuchel as their new national team head coach and it could be good news for Glasgow Rangers star Jack Butland.
The English colossus did not get a look-in under Gareth Southgate and now has an opportunity to impress a new manager who does not already have his favourites.
Butland, who is currently valued at €3m (£2.5m) by Transfermarkt, has kept a whopping 33 clean sheets in 71 appearances in all competitions for the Gers, including 23 clean sheets in 40 matches in the Scottish Premiership.
The former Crystal Palace and Stoke City ace has been a revelation for the Ibrox giants but one of the players who has helped him to keep so many clean sheets is central defender John Souttar.
How much Rangers paid for John Souttar
In January 2022, former sporting director Ross Wilson reached a pre-contract agreement with the Scotland international to bring him to Glasgow on a free transfer from Hearts at the end of the season.
Market Movers
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At the time of his official move to Rangers in the summer, Transfermarkt valued the towering centre-back at just €1.5m (£1.2m) after he had played 162 matches during his time with the Jam Tarts.
He, unfortunately, endured a horrendous debut season with the Light Blues due to a lengthy injury absence. The 28-year-old star suffered an ankle injury in August, a month on from his move to the club, that kept him out for 50 matches for club and country.
That meant that Souttar was limited to just 13 appearances in all competitions for the Gers in the 2022/23 campaign, which was far from ideal as he looked to make a good first impression.
John Souttar's soaring market value
Since that ankle injury, the former Hearts titan has gone from strength to strength at Ibrox and his value has soared as a result of his strong form.
In the 2023/24 campaign, Souttar scored two goals in 41 appearances in all competitions for Rangers and showcased his dominant defending in the Premiership.
The Scottish colossus won 71% of his duels against opposition players across 28 games in the league, helping Butland to keep as many clean sheets as he did.
Appearances
7
Pass accuracy
92%
Clean sheets
5
Ground duel success rate
56%
Aerial duel success rate
61%
As you can see in the table above, Souttar has also enjoyed a strong start to the current campaign by helping the English shot-stopper to keep five clean sheets in seven outings in the top-flight.
His market value has soared as a result of his impressive form over the past 14 months or so, with his current Transfermarkt value sitting at €3.5m (£2.9m) – more than double what his value was at the time of his move to Rangers.
This shows that the Light Blues hit gold when they signed Souttar for nothing in 2022, as his value has soared loads, thanks to his superb performances, and he is now more valuable than England hopeful Jack Butland.
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