Marc Guehi talks about Liverpool transfer rumours (Credits: Imago Images)
McCrorie has returned to Rangers after completing a £1.5million move from Bristol City, and he is already making clear what drove his decision.
The 28-year-old defender admits that initial talks began while Danny Rohl was still in charge at Ibrox, but it was the arrival of Derek McInnes that sealed the deal.
McCrorie spent three formative years working under McInnes at Aberdeen, first joining on loan in 2020 before making that move permanent a year later.
Speculation has been swirling over whether fellow Aberdeen alumnus Lewis Ferguson could also make the move to Rangers, but McCrorie was unwilling to entertain the question.
When pressed on whether he would welcome a reunion with the Scotland international, McCrorie said: “I need to be respectful to Bologna. He’s a Bologna player, he’s their captain. I’m really good friends with him, but that’s not for me to answer.”
The response drew a firm line under the topic, though McCrorie was considerably more forthcoming when the conversation turned to his manager.
McCrorie said: “The big thing for me coming back here was the gaffer. I had a good few offers back in England but as soon as the gaffer got the job here, I knew he was the man to take the club forward.”
Their previous working relationship at Aberdeen clearly left a lasting impression, with McInnes having personally visited McCrorie to persuade him to move north.
McCrorie recalled: “The gaffer came to my house in East Kilbride at the time and persuaded me to go up to Aberdeen. I had a great three years up there. He took me under his wing.”
The defender acknowledged he was driven by personal ambition when he originally left Rangers back in 2021, wanting to develop away from Ibrox.
He explained: “He was the one who gave me the belief to step up and leave Rangers. To be honest, I wanted to leave in the first place. I was being selfish at the time, I wanted to go and better myself as a player.”
McCrorie was candid about his mindset at the time, recognising the desire to prove himself as a first-choice player at club level.
He added: “I wanted to be the main man somewhere, get games under my belt and unlock the talent I knew I had. I was obviously a young boy at the time and I’m a lot different now to what I was back then.”
The circle is now complete, with McCrorie reflecting on a journey that has brought him back to where his professional career first started.
He concluded: “Five or six years on, I’m back here with him again.”
About the Author
