Derek McInnes has confirmed that the decision over James Penrice's long-term Rangers future rests with the club's hierarchy, while he has no concerns about keeping the new Scotland call-up grounded.
The 27-year-old left-back, on loan from AEK Athens, has impressed since arriving at Ibrox, scoring on his debut in August and delivering strong performances in his first two Old Firm matches against Celtic. He now has a Premier Sports Cup final to look forward to next month after Rangers edged past Aberdeen in Saturday's semi-final at Hampden.
Scotland Recognition and Attitude
Penrice has been handed his first call-up by Scotland head coach Sebastien Pocognoli ahead of this month's Nations League clashes with North Macedonia and Switzerland. McInnes believes the 27-year-old's hunger will prevent any complacency.
"It's great for James to get into the Scotland set-up. That there was no real surprise with it. But nonetheless, you see James' reaction to it and that's the way it should be, getting called up for your country. Findlay Curtis is in there as well, Liam Kelly too, so we're well represented. It's good for the club that they're away with Scotland and hopefully it's a positive experience with them," McInnes said.
"But James deserves it and hopefully he can get on the pitch and come back with a couple of caps, ideally, and he comes back in good form. The thing for me that screams out of James is hunger. He's driven himself to get to where he is now. And I don't think anybody should ever underestimate working with hungry players."
Experience and Consistency
Despite his youthful appearance, Penrice is one of the more senior figures in the Rangers dressing room. His experience includes title-winning knowledge from AEK's victorious campaign in Greece last year.
"In terms of the experience thing, I do think that age between 26 and 30 is such a pivotal age for having, bearing that influence on others. But if you're one that can be at the top of your game at that age, then I think you can really do something for a manager and for a team. And we don't have a lot in that age bracket who are currently playing," McInnes added.
"So James, he leads by example, I think, more than anything else. And we have got a young team, but with that comes the excitement and potential. Albeit, sometimes you get a bit of inconsistencies. James has been one of the ones that's been really consistent with his work."
Permanent Deal Decision
With seven months remaining on Penrice's loan deal, Rangers fans are already calling for the move to be made permanent. Record Sport reported in September that Rangers would need to pay £800,000 to keep him in Glasgow.
McInnes hopes that will happen but admits the final say lies with the club's board. "Certainly I've made my feelings clear on it. Ideally, I would like to have done it as a permanent deal [when he signed], but the best way forward at the time was a loan. But I think we're all aware of what it needs to be to make it a permanent," he said.
"There's a lot of goodwill all round to try and that could be something that we'd like to do. The conversations I've had with Jim Gillespie and the board has been along those lines and hopefully we can make that permanent. Because I think what he's done since the first minute is just play with so much enthusiasm, clearly wants to be here."
Penrice will join team-mate Findlay Curtis in Pocognoli's camp next week, with McInnes hoping the pair benefit from the experience. "Findlay's a boy that I really enjoy working with from my first conversation with him. I phoned him when he was in Miami with the World Cup and it was such a positive experience for him. I'm really looking forward to working with him going forward as well," McInnes said.
"Findlay's been involved in most games for us, either starting or coming off the bench and getting those minutes is vitally important. But for any player, whether it's homegrown or not, they've got to accept that at Rangers, there should be competition for places."
