Callum Davidson will leave the door open for Scottish Cup hero Glenn Middleton to return to St Johnstone.
But even if Saints don’t get the Scotland under-21 international back for a second loan, the Perth boss believes the work they have done to improve Middleton will increase the possibility of another Rangers player arriving at McDiarmid Park for next season.
Davidson predicted “great things” for the forward who secured top-six football with a late goal against Ross County, scored a stunning free-kick against St Mirren at Hampden and was a star performer a couple of weeks later when the cup double was completed at the expense of Hibs.
He retains hope that Middleton’s career progression will continue with Saints.
However, if not, there’s the intriguing possibility of an Ibrox loan Plan B.
Get this on repeat ♻️#SJFCLive
— St. Johnstone FC (@StJohnstone) May 9, 2021
“Glenn wasn’t getting first team football at Rangers and he wanted to prove himself,” said Davidson. “All credit to him for doing that.
“He stepped up and scored some crucial goals for us.
“I do believe that if Glenn has a full season with someone and plays a lot of games he’ll go on to do great things and push for a place in the Scotland squad.
“I’ve spoken to Rangers, who have been brilliant. They’ve been really honest with me.
“They want him to go back there and they’ll assess how he’s getting on.
“It’s definitely not one I’d shut the door on.
“We’ve got a good relationship with Rangers and hopefully, if it isn’t Glenn, it will maybe be somebody else.”
After what was an incredible season for the club I’d just like to say how grateful and thankful I am for the opportunity to be involved in it all since singing on loan in January. I wish all the boys and the staff all the best for the future! @StJohnstone 💙 pic.twitter.com/4VYPnaR96X
— Glenn Middleton (@Glenn_M22) June 1, 2021
Davidson confirmed that Saints are “moving on” from Guy Melamed after the Israeli chose not to accept the terms on offer for a contract extension.
“I think Guy was waiting to see what options were available to him,” he said.
“We put an offer to him. It was a ‘wait and see’ but we haven’t heard anything back.
“We’ve got to move on from that as well.
“We made him a really good offer and it was a while ago now – well before the season finished.
“I’ve got to keep moving forward and looking at other strikers who are available.
“Hopefully we can get someone tied up pretty soon and start bringing new faces in.”
Davidson will be prioritising adaptability in any new forward recruit(s).
“Callum Hendry is back but we’ve lost Glenn and Craig (Conway) from attacking positions, as well as Guy,” he said.
“It would be good to get somebody who can play up front and wide so he can fit the two formations.
“Obviously, we play 5-2-3 and 5-3-2.
“They have both worked well for us and I do like the three up front system in the big games.
“We’ve played it really well and it’s been a big part of our success.
“The players I’ve got are really adaptable and I know I can trust Chris Kane, Mayso (Stevie May) and Mikey (O’Halloran).
“I’m looking forward to us improving even more in that area next season.”
