PROMISING footballer Jordan Gibson has spoken of his determination to make his mark at Glasgow Rangers after leaving Bromsgrove Sporting to seal his ‘dream’ move.
The 17-year-old is set to make the switch from the Victoria Ground to the 51,082-capacity Ibrox Stadium this weekend as he embarks on a career in professional football.
Having suffered setbacks at West Bromwich Albion, Stoke City and Wolverhampton Wanderers, a full-time contract did not look like going the Bartley Green youngster’s way.
But Gibson refused to give up on his dream and when he was offered the opportunity to impressive coaches at Rangers, he told The Standard he was determined to give it his all.
“It’s a bit of a dream, but I have always believed,” he said. “I was released by West Brom, and then went to Stoke, but had to leave because of transport issues.
“But those experiences have helped to motivate me.
“People were saying last year ‘what are you going to do after school?’ And I didn’t know. So when I got the call from Rangers I knew I had to make the most of it.
“I was a bit nervous at first, but after a few days everything felt normal. I trained with the first team some days, got to know people and played in two games which went well.
“My dad said to me ‘we are expecting a call in half an hour, so I am going to come to yours and we’ll wait for the call’.
“He came and said he had received a call about an hour ago and my mouth just dropped and then he said ‘you’re in’.
“I got up and just ran around the whole street. It was mad.”
Gibson, who joined Sporting last year, admitted the club’s u18s manager, Trevor Carter, had played a big role in helping to propel his career.
“He knew what I wanted to achieve and he knew the scout was watching me, so he played me every week even though the team was mostly second years,” Gibson said.
Rangers, who reached the UEFA Cup final in 2008, missed out on a return to the Scottish Premier League last season after losing to Motherwell in the play-off showdown.
But Gibson believed this could work in his favour as he bids to break into the first team under recently appointed manager Mark Warburton.
“If they had gone up I would have had less opportunities as more money would have gone into the first team, so hopefully this year we will go up when I have made a name for myself,” he added.
“I will be playing for the u20s regularly and just get a call up whenever. But the new manager is meant to be all about giving youth a chance, so hopefully I can breakthrough by Christmas.”
Gibson played in a variety of positions at Bromsgrove, but academy boss Andy Parr believed he would make an ‘excellent’ attacking midfielder.
“He has got a bit of class about him and has got a good footballing brain, so I think he has got all the attributes to make a career in professional football and do very well,” he said.
“To have someone come through really quickly has been really good for us and I am confident he will progress at Rangers.”
