Connor Goldson: Can Rangers afford to let defender leave amid Premier League speculation?

It's hard to imagine a Rangers side without Connor Goldson in it.

Yet the 28-year-old will be free to speak to other clubs in a few weeks and new manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst was forced to deny suggestions on Friday that he had rejected a new deal and insisted talks are ongoing.

Asked how he rated the chances of Goldson staying, he said: "I don't have a clue. Maybe I will know more when I have the chance to speak to him myself."

So with six months left to run on his deal, should Rangers make securing him a priority? Or should they accept that the reported lure of a move back to England will prove too strong?

'Hunger' comments spark concern

Goldson anchored the record-breaking backline that helped claim Rangers' first Scottish Premiership title in a decade last term. However, his comments in the wake of their League Cup semi-final defeat by Hibernian caused some concern.

The former Shrewsbury Town defender said his team-mates did not "follow instructions" and had "lost a bit of hunger", before confessing that the Hampden encounter was "over" by half-time.

"I was very disappointed in that interview," former Rangers captain Richard Gough told BBC Sportsound. "Most of the players at that club at the moment have won one trophy out of nine, how can they lose their hunger?

"When you come to Rangers or Celtic as a player, there's an expectation that you don't lose games, you have to win every game. The game is never over at 3-1."

So player of the year nominations and shouts for an England call-up were forgotten, but an impressive display at Easter Road on Wednesday - as Van Bronckhorst continued his 100% start - reinforced Goldson's importance.

Unfinished Premier League business?

While Goldson's remarks received criticism, having the courage to face up to the media and call out a below-par squad mentality has to be commended.

Gordon Greer - his former captain at Brighton - says that fight and leadership is something he noticed from day one, when a young Goldson was brought to the club from Shrewsbury in 2015.

"He's a leader in the way he conducts, trains and applies himself," the former Scotland defender told BBC Scotland. "He was always hardworking and he wanted to learn and he applied himself in the right way.

"His standards in training showed leadership qualities for a young player, not many do that. As far as an attitude to win and succeed, he did it every day in training."

Contract talks between Rangers and Goldson seem to be dragging, fuelling rumours that the defender sees his future elsewhere beyond the end of this campaign.

Just three of his 42 Brighton appearances came in the Premier League, and Greer feels the centre-back may have unfinished business south of the border.

"I was surprised Brighton let him go when they did," Greer said. "I would imagine if he hung about there's no doubt he would've got back in the team at some point.

"I'm sure there's a part of him that would like a crack at the Premier League again before he's too old, but Rangers are a fantastic club. They're on the way up and it's going to be great for him no matter what he does."

Performing at the same level as last season?

There is no guarantee Goldson would walk into an English top-flight side should he opt to leave, though.

Rangers conceded their 14th Premiership goal of the season in last weekend's win at Livingston and Wednesday's 1-0 win at Hibs was just their fourth clean sheet of the league campaign. At the same point last term, they had had 13.

Across Steven Gerrard's side's title-winning campaign - in which Goldson played every minute - the Rangers backline conceded just 13 goals in total, meaning their average goal concession - again before the Dundee game - had increased from 0.3 to 0.9 per game.

Individually, some of Goldson's numbers have also taken a dip. The centre-back is making just 0.3 interceptions per game, compared with 0.9 last season, while his aerial duel success has narrowly dropped from 72% to 70%.

However, in the entirety of last season and the first 15 games of this term, Goldson has made just one error leading to a shot or goal.

That reliance was on show in Wednesday's vital victory in Leith, as he made more clearances than anyone else and won all his aerial duels.

The centre-back also plays an instrumental role in Rangers' approach play. The defender is by far and away his side's most successful passer - ranking top for both short and long passes.

With all that being so, Rangers would likely have to spend big to fill the void should Goldson depart. But a new deal would frank him as one of the club's highest earners at time when cost-cutting will be on the agenda.