View: Rangers may wish they had ex-flop for title run-in as he stars in Europe

Rangers would love to have Sam Lammers’ production for their Scottish Premiership title run-in, as the striker is shining in Eredivisie with FC Twente.

Signed by Rangers for a reported fee of £3.5million from Atalanta in the summer of 2023, Lammers was expected to do big things at Ibrox.

He’d come through at one of Dutch football’s best academy systems with PSV Eindhoven, and had represented the Netherlands at various youth levels too.

A 19-goal campaign for SC Heerenveen in 2018-19 really put him on the map across European football, but he never scored more than three goals in a single season after that before joining Rangers.

Unfortunately, that form was to repeat itself in Glasgow, and Rangers didn’t get value for money with their permanent transfer for Lammers.

How has Sam Lammers performed for FC Twente this season?

Lammers signed for FC Twente in the summer of 2024, with the Eredivisie outfit reported to have paid just £2.5m to secure his services.

He’d spent the first half of the 2023-24 campaign with Rangers, before being loaned out in January 2024 to Dutch side FC Utrecht, where he scored 11 goals in 20 games.

His two goals and two assists from 31 career Rangers outings ensured he went down as one of the Club’s most disappointing transfer flops in recent times, but FC Twente saw an opportunity with him.

And, they’ve been greatly rewarded for taking a chance on the now-28-year-old, as he’s been in superb form for them in Eredivisie this season.

Lammers has scored five goals and provided seven assists from 21 Eredivisie games, and is currently on a run of form that’s seen him produce seven goal contributions in his last five matches.

As per Sofascore, he’s created 10 big chances in the Dutch top flight this term, whilst also playing 1.4 key passes per game and has an expected goals (xG) of 8.84.

His goal return could be significantly higher too, as he’s missed 11 big chances and posted a goal conversion of 12 per cent, showing how easily he could be in double figures this season.

Rangers may have given up on Lammers too soon

Hindsight always wins, but Rangers’ decision to axe Lammers after just one season – half of which was spent out on loan – looks to have potentially been a mistake.

The striker has been in brilliant form since his return to the Eredivisie, and is set to continue playing a key role in Twente’s push to finish second in the Dutch first division this season.

Danny Rohl may have been able to get the best out of him at Rangers, and especially alongside a player like Youssef Chermiti.

But, we have also seen numerous examples of players coming to these shores from the Netherlands and not taking to it, so he could just be a player that works in Eredivisie but not really anywhere else too.

Updated 24/7 with expert analysis from the heart of Govan.