Dan Neil has swapped Wearside for Glasgow this summer, bringing with him an appetite for silverware and a track record of delivering at clubs hungry for success.
The 24-year-old midfielder played a central role in Sunderland’s remarkable rise from League One back to the Premier League, serving as captain during a defining period in the club’s recent history.
His influence at Sunderland was eventually reduced following the £13million signing of Switzerland international Granit Xhaka, but Neil remains proud of what he helped achieve on Wearside.
Rangers have won just one league title in the last 15 years and endured a disastrous end-of-season collapse that left them finishing third in the Scottish Premiership last term.
New manager Derek McInnes is now tasked with rebuilding the club’s fortunes, and Neil has signed a three-year deal to be part of that revival at Ibrox.
Neil drew a direct parallel between the two clubs, saying: “When I broke through at Sunderland, they were in League One and the Championship.”
He added: “We were a massive, massive club and shouldn’t really be there, so the demand in those leagues was to win every week and get promoted.”
Neil explained that the weight of supporter expectation shapes how he approaches his work every single day, making Rangers an attractive destination for exactly that reason.
“It’s a massive factor in the way I work every day and the character I am, and I’d say it was a massive factor when I was choosing Rangers,” he said.
He acknowledged the differences between the two projects while understanding the underlying similarities, stating: “I can say Sunderland were a bit of a sleeping giant.”
Neil added: “I wouldn’t say a similar project because Rangers are in the top division so it’s slightly different, but I can understand what you mean in terms of Rangers wanting to get back to winning silverware and Sunderland wanting to get back to the Premier League.”
Rangers were first linked with the former England Under-20 international in January, but complications over loan quotas at Sunderland meant a winter move to Ibrox could not be arranged at the time.
Neil instead joined Championship side Ipswich on loan for the second half of last season, describing his spell there as successful and enjoyable before returning to weigh up his options in the summer.
He reflected on the delay, saying: “There was a slight issue in terms of loans, the club had a lot of players out on loan abroad, so unfortunately it wasn’t going to work for a loan until the end of the season.”
With his Sunderland contract expiring, Neil was free to move on a permanent basis and needed little persuasion once Rangers rekindled their interest, saying: “When the interest was reignited in the summer I was pretty set on where I wanted to go.”
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