Rangers' title winning hero's English destination revealed
This former Rangers man is heading to a new club this summer
Ex-Rangers midfielder Scott Arfield is poised to join Bolton Wanderers this summer.
The 35-year-old, who made 19 caps for Canada before retiring from international football in 2019, is ‘heading’ to the Trotters from Charlotte FC, according to The Athletic journalist Tom Bogert on X.
Rangers signed him back in 2018 and he went on to become a key player during his time at Ibrox. He made 233 appearances in all competitions and scored 43 goals.
The Scotland-born man helped the Gers win the Scottish Premiership title in 2021 under Steven Gerrard, as well as the Scottish Cup a year later.
Arfield was also part of Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side who reached the Europa League final but they were beaten by Eintracht Frankfurt on penalties in Seville.
He left left Glasgow for a new chapter at Charlotte in America. They are managed by former Walsall, Brentford, Aston Villa, Norwich City and Leicester City boss Dean Smith these days.
After moving to MLS, he said at the time: “When you get older you think of the game differently. But the desire and the appetite to play football on a consistent basis has never left me.
“I was coming on for 20 minutes here (at Rangers), 10 minutes there, half an hour sometimes. It’s difficult to make an impression. After the manager came in, I think it was just two games I started and I didn’t really do it in either of them.
“It’s difficult when you are playing 10 minutes here and there and then being asked to play 90 minutes because the game is different. It did get a bit difficult when you want to grab your chance.
“It all comes down to playing consistently, that was my thing. I want to play, I want to wake up on Sunday morning sore from the effort that I put in on a Saturday. That is the best feeling, when you know you have represented your club. You might have had a big moment. It is the greatest feeling to have.
“And I wasn’t getting that on a consistent basis. That was the biggest thing. I feel as if I have got big moments in my temperament. Technically, I think I have still got it. Hopefully I can show it in a different league.”
Arfield also hasn’t ruled out a return to Rangers in the future: “I would love to go back to that football club,” he said. “If you ask anybody, if you get the opportunity to go there then you take it. Even guys most people don’t know who work at the club feel extremely lucky to be part of it.
“If anything comes up in a coaching capacity, helping the young boys in the first team even, I would jump at the chance. But I think that’s a few years away for me now. I have a lot more in my legs and a lot more big moments hopefully.”
He has also played for Falkirk, Huddersfield Town and Burnley in the past.