Paul Merson has said that he could have gone to Glasgow Rangers when Walter Smith was the manager of the club.
Merson had a successful career south of the border, appearing for Arsenal, Walsall, Aston Villa, Portsmouth and Middlesbrough across a career that lasted over 20 years. Not only that, he also made 21 appearances for England during his time as a professional, and managed 126 league goals too.
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Speaking to The Lockdown Tactics Podcast (via The Herald), the 52-year-old admitted that the Gers were interested in him a couple of times, but he wasn’t brave enough make the switch. He said:
“The opportunity to join Rangers came up a lot. They were always in for me. Walter Smith was the manager. I was playing for Arsenal at that time and I would have probably gone.
“But it’s just back then, when you are younger, your agent will say to put in a transfer and you can go. But I didn’t have the balls to do that.
“If I’d put in a transfer request I’d have been terrified of George Graham and I would have sat in the reserves for four months.
“Leeds United were also in for me a lot. Howard Wilknson was the manager there at that time.
“That was a successful Rangers team. It would have suited me.
“Anderlecht also came in for me when I was 17. That really turned my head. They were massive at the time, a top European team.”
Smith was manager of the 54-time Scottish champions from 1991 to 1998 during his first spell, and he was able to attract a number of top quality players such as Brian Laudrup and Paul Gascoigne. Adding Merson to the mix would have only made the Ibrox outfit stronger.
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Merson was well-known for having fantastic technical ability – he wouldn’t have lasted 10 years at Arsenal without it. One can only imagine how exciting it would have been with the Englishman in the mix north of the border.
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