Aheed Abrar
Jack Butland left Manchester United for Rangers to get more game time
Former Manchester United shot-stopper Jack Butland joined Rangers in the ongoing transfer window to get more game time and opportunities in the first-team setup.
The Red Devils signed the 30-year-old on loan from Crystal Palace in January after the departure of Martin Dubravaka. However, the English national did not feature for the Manchester-based club during his stint.
Speaking to The Scotsman (h/t Mirror), Butland revealed that he wanted to play more. The goalkeeper did not want to be a footnote in the grand scheme of things at United.
“As much as I enjoyed Palace and as good as United was, I missed playing. And that’s important to me.
“All right, ‘Could you be at United?’ Well, yes, but what would the rest of my career look like? That was important to me. I wanted 30 onwards to be something l like back on as a successful period and not one that drifted away.”
Butland made a name for himself at Stoke City in the Premier League. However, in the last few years, the shot-stoppers stock has fallen after playing for the Potters in the Championship and hardly getting any chances at Palace.
The Selhurst Park side got a hold of the English national’s signature in the summer of 2020. However, the Eagles did not count on the 30-year-old a lot.
Subsequently, once the goalkeeper’s deal with the South London-based club ran down, he decided to join Rangers. Allan McGregor had been the Scottish outfit’s number one for several years but left the club this summer.
At United, David de Gea’s contract concluded at the end of last month as well. The Spaniard was Erik ten Hag’s go-to in the previous campaign. But the Red Devils are close to signing Andre Onana from Inter Milan.
Tom Heaton and Dean Henderson are on the Old Trafford side’s books as well for now. The two are arguably better options than Butland. Had the English national stayed, it would have seemingly been likely that he would not be the first choice or second.
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Therefore, it is understandable that the shot-stopper opted to leave the Old Trafford side. The 30-year-old is still relatively young for a goalkeeper and Rangers is a historic club.
