They do say the grass is not always greener elsewhere. You only have to ask a host of players who left Scottish Premiership giants Rangers last summer about that.
Ryan Kent has barely kicked a ball in anger at Fenerbahce, aborted January moves to the likes of Lazio and Hull City feeling now like missed opportunities. Alfredo Morelos‘ spell at Santos has gone downhill fast.
Glen Kamara may be playing in the Championship as Rangers return to the Champions League. Mateusz Zukowski has been dropped to the reserves over in Poland with Slask Wroclaw. And while Parma may have secured their return to Serie A, it’s fair to say Antonio Colak has been more of an extra than a leading man in their success story.
At least none of the aforementioned quintet have fears of relegation haunting their dreams, however. The same cannot be said of a man who once cost Rangers £3 million, and left for nothing when his contract expired five years later, joining Odense Boldklub in Denmark.
Another former Rangers man struggling post-Ibrox
Filip Helander’s return to Scandinavia started well. He put those injury issues behind him, at last, and even forced his way back into the Sweden squad. Those bright beginnings, however, have given way to confusion and concern.
Helander was stripped off the captain’s armband only a few weeks after getting it in the first place. There has been a rather passive aggressive dispute played out in the media between the former Ibrox colossus and Odense’s sporting director.
The threat of a demotion to Denmark’s second tier is also very real indeed. Odense have slipped to second bottom in the table after a seven-game winless run. And Helander is making it pretty clear that, if OB do find themselves flying down the plughole, the experienced centre-half has little interest in helping his team-mates bounce back.
“No,” was Helander’s stern response when asked if he can see himself playing second-tier football in 2024/25, speaking to Bold.
“I don’t think about whether we get relegated or what might happen. We have to focus on the next match. We must do our best to keep OB in the Super League. That’s all we think about.
“Of course, I think about what will happen (with regards to my future),” Helander counters. “I have a family (to consider). But I try not to think about the future. I will do my best here.”
Filip Helander could move on again
Helander’s short-term contract expires in a matter of weeks. The Malmo-born 31-year-old insists that there have been few talks held over a new deal, with Odense feeling increasingly like a short-term stepping stone of a move for a player who saw his Rangers career ruined by injuries but obviously has bigger ambitions than a relegation battle.
Helander’s former employers, meanwhile, may find themselves in the market for a new centre-half this summer. Connor Goldson’s influence is waning, while Leon Balogun is hardly a long-term solution.
There is interest, HITC Football understands, in Rapid Vienna stopper Leopold Querfeld. It is believed Querfeld could be available for a bargain £2 million, however, due to a clause in his contract at the Austrian Bundesliga outfit.