What Ange Postecoglou and James Maddison said about Rangers recruit after Neymar-like Tottenham display
There’s been high praise dished out to the Tottenham starlet before and now he’s at Rangers.
He comes to Rangers with a big reputation - and Ange Postecoglou plus James Maddison’s prior Tottenham comments only serve to back up the hype.
The Light Blues have undergone an extensive recruitment drive amid new ownership and Russel Martin’s arrival as head coach. One arrival has been teenager Mikey Moore, the Tottenham winger who has impressed in his appearances at senior level so far, but has been loaned out to Ibrox for regular senior exposure. It adds to Martin’s options on the flanks who include Djeidi Gassama, Findlay Curtis, Oscar Cortes and Kieran Dowell, who has been used in a winger role so far.
After a 1-0 win over AZ Alkmaar en route to winning the Europa League last season, Moore impressed in the game. It resulted in big praise from Spurs teammate Maddison who made a lofty comparison.
What James Maddison said about Rangers signing
He said: “I thought we had Neymar on the left wing! He is fearless, [he has] that young, fearless mentality. He's a brilliant lad, he has bags of ability. I will hopefully help him with wise words but he has all the ability and well done to him."
Boss Postecoglou was the man who handed him the chance and has provided an insight into the type of player Rangers have obtained. He believes Moore is best off the left and he’s a rough diamond bound to sparkle with the proper polish. The former Celtic manager said when asked about Maddison’s comparison on Hayters TV: “Pretty hard for me to keep a lid on it now, isn't it, mate?
“He was exciting, you can't deny it, there's no point in denying it. I love the way Mikey is taking it all in his stride, he's kind of working hard every day, he's wanting to develop, he's kind of understanding that this is a journey. It would be very easy for a young guy like him who's just turned 17 to feel like he's somehow made it but you never get that sense.
Ange Postecoglou verdict on star who’s signed for Rangers
“It's exciting when you've got such a young player who wants that responsibility to make an impact rather than just sort of, sometimes, again, with young players they're a bit worried about making mistakes. He's developing well. We've just got to be really careful about sort of how we use him and when we use him. I think that's the key for us, particularly in these early stages but I have no fear throwing him in. Absolutely none. I know, I see it every day, that he's a great young player and definitely more to come.
“He's got to work on his heading, to be fair, he's had a couple of those opportunities so he's not the complete product but that's what I mean. I think he's got a really mature outlook. He doesn't let those kind of things phase him.
“Even if he tries to take a player on, it doesn't work, he's not going to shy away from it the next time. I've played him out on the right but I definitely think he looks more comfortable out on the left but even taking that into context, he still contributes when we put him on the right. He's got a great sort of mature outlook on football.”