Lawrence Shankland has been named Rangers captain by manager Derek McInnes, who broke the news on Wednesday afternoon. The 30-year-old striker, who joined this summer from Hearts, said he intends to consult former Rangers greats for advice on the role.
"I think that's maybe something I could do," Shankland said. "Because you want to buy into the experience of people who have done it and if I get that opportunity to speak to people I will. Guys like Barry and Lee McCulloch are still around the club so if I bump into them they will give me advice along the way."
Dreaming of Following Heroes
Shankland grew up a Rangers supporter and idolised former captain Barry Ferguson. "Barry was always my Rangers hero growing up. Maybe that was about him being the captain and getting the opportunity to lift trophies at the end of the season. It was probably the thought of that feeling. That's one you want as a captain."
He admitted that after being given the armband, he was already thinking about lifting silverware. "Will I dream about winning here as skipper? That will probably depend what time my kids go down! But listen, you don't need to go too far down the corridor here to see the photos of past captains lifting trophies. So of course that's something I've always dreamed of."
He also reflected on his journey, noting the ups and downs. "Throughout my career you learn about ups and downs. They come pretty rapid and that's been the case in the last few months. At night time, you try and reflect on things and look back. But at this stage of my career, I also have to live in the moment. I'm loving where I am just now."
Expectation to Win the Title
Shankland made clear the objective for the season. "To win the title would obviously be huge and it's something we're going to try and do. Going into the season, that's the expectation. When you come to a football club like this, you want to go and win the league. There's no shying away from that, we know it. It's a responsibility that we accept as players. And obviously myself as a captain now, I'll need to bleed that into the changing room. We missed out last season but I'm looking forward and hopefully can go one closer this year."
Remarkable Rise from Setback
Shankland's career path to Ibrox has been unusual. After leaving Aberdeen as a youngster without a club, he trained on his own at his former high school before Ian McCall gave him an opportunity at Ayr United. Now he is a Rangers captain and Scotland striker. He credits those early struggles for his attitude.
"Obviously the experiences were huge and turning points in my career. When you're at a crossroads, you're always looking for the next opportunity to try and show yourself, improve and do things better than you did before. I think that's probably been a valuable lesson I picked up pretty young. It was a lesson for me to start doing things properly every single day. Week in, week out. Do as much as you can in the way you can. Every time you show up to work, you turn up with the right attitude. I think that's something I've always had. When I got the opportunity to go to Ayr and play football again, I was just so grateful. That grounding obviously does help. You work hard and you then get moments like this, an honour to lead a club like Rangers. It's huge."
Leading from the Front as Striker-Captain
Shankland acknowledges the added pressure of being the club's main goal scorer while also captaining the side. "I've been under that pressure as a striker, no matter what club I've been at. Even since my early days at Ayr. I've managed to put myself in a position of being a wee bit of a talisman at clubs. At United and Hearts as well. That's something I've been proud of. Setting examples and getting the goals to help the team. That's a responsibility I enjoy. Coming here there's maybe a bit more scrutiny around it. But for me, in terms of the job, it stays the same."
Ahead of Friday night's Premiership opener against his former club Dundee United at Tannadice, he said: "I've came to a big club with a big support and I have an opportunity to play at Ibrox. The way I expect it to go is for us to control a lot of games and create chances for the strikers. That's a challenge I'm relishing. I'm looking forward to leading the line here."
