ONLY those who have completely lost their marbles believed there was anything in the internet rumour that any day now Robin van Persie would be seen walking up the marble staircase at Ibrox.
Even in the era when Rangers spent money they didn’t have on players they could not afford, the club would have baulked at the £100,000 weekly wage the veteran Dutchman is reportedly ready to accept as a top up to his already bulging pension plan.
Ah, but that is the internet for you. A tweet can make its way around the world many times before the truth has had a chance to look for its boots.
READ MORE: Mark Warburton laughs off suggestion Robin van Persie could join Rangers
So no RVP at RFC. Not this season nor the next. However, what the silliness of this rumour did do was shine a light on something else, which is that the Rangers fans are smiling once again. Or at least grinning a little bit. They did seem to enjoy the link, regardless of the ridiculousness of it all.
At least their club is involved once more in impossible transfer rumours just a few years after actually signing Kevin Kyle.
Getting someone such as Van Persie, even approaching his 33rd birthday is a daft notion but then did any Rangers supporter believe they would come out of the Championship and sign Joey Barton and Niko Kranjcar. Neither were ever world class such as the supposed next player to sign on for Mark Warburton but by the same token they are not half bad.
They are back in the game. It's a start.
Warburton found the Van Persie link amusing. What isn’t as funny is the fact Rangers, and Celtic for that matter, cannot compete with any player who believes they can still cut it in England, even the most modest of performers never mind established internationals.
Deals, loan or otherwise, will still be attempted and perhaps one of two will swap reserve team football for a bottom half of a Premier League club for Glasgow. But even that is unlikely.
Warburton was asked whether Scottish football will ever get back to the days when such a rumour may have even a grain of truth about it. His reply was accurate and a bit depressing.
“It’s down to finance, whether that’s a TV deal or what, they have to get the finance right,” said the Rangers manager.
“Some of the deals down south are incredible, there are some going on behind-the-scenes at clubs at the moment that would make your hair curl – if I had any.
"The market is not abating. It keeps going and going. The Premier League money is increasing again next year by about 32 per cent.”
But is that in itself sustainable? Does the former market trader see a day when the English Premier League goes bust?
“I always look at currency markets,” said Warburton. “When currency gets to a certain level you have to look at it. When we were getting $2 to the pound everyone was saying ‘oh it’s so cheap over there in America – it’s too good to be true’ – and it is. It’s out of kilter. About $1.50 is probably level.
“You look at football and you would say there is too much and it’s too good to be true.
“But right now the Premier League brand is magnificent. You can go anywhere in the world and you’re watching Premier League football. I’ve got friends in New York who are watching more games than me.
“What a magnificent product and brand. The money is mind-boggling but the quality of product is ever improving so all credit to them. We have to find a way to bridge the gap,
“You hear people saying it’s great to have Rangers back and that’s it. No. You’ve got to go hard again and keep improving it. You can’t stop. We have shown that young players can come here and be challenged. There is an ignorance about the Scottish game. But somehow we have to improve the income.”
Those sane people whose lives and jobs do not revolve around any kind of social media will perhaps wonder where this Van Persie ‘story' came from. It emerged on Twitter, where the lunatics have truly taken over.
PR conscious bookies quickly revealed short odds on the move happening and the rest took care of itself.
A smiling Warburton said: “It’s unbelievable nonsense, but there you go. I think common sense prevails here.
“Robin van Persie is a hugely talented player but he’s contracted to Fenerbahce and I’m sure he’s on a pretty sizeable salary there. There are some rumours that have a certain substance and there are others that are beyond belief. Let’s just say that’s up there with the pig flying past the window.
“I woke up to a battery of text messages and phone calls and I don’t particularly enjoy that. Betting had been suspended, but I don’t know where it came from. Listen it’s great, it’s football, it’s opinion and it’s certainly what people are talking about.”
And football is meant to be fun after all.
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