“I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.” – laparenthese-gourmande

Declan John struggled to establish himself at Rangers during his two-year spell.

The defender was excited to join the club in 2017 under former boss Pedro Caixinha, but would be sent back to Swansea upon the arrival of Steven Gerrard.

The Welshman, 29, had hoped to stay longer at Ibrox as he felt he was starting to find his feet as his departure came and went.

Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images

And this, for the defender, remains a regret in his career of not having been able to play as often as he would have liked for the club.

A few years later, however, John will face his former club this evening when the Gers travel to Paisley to face St Mirren in the Scottish Premiership.

He is hoping to land a new contract with the Buddies after initially signing a short-term deal and manager Stephen Robinson recently admitted he would be open to talks.

And that’s a luxury the player didn’t have at Rangers and it continues to rub John the wrong way.

Declan John would have liked to stay at Rangers longer

“It’s crazy how football works,” he said.

“I enjoyed my time with Rangers. I wish I could have stayed a little longer. It’s a big club.

“My timing at the club worked against me at the time. The manager changed quite quickly. Graeme Murty took over shortly after I signed. I think I did pretty well. Maybe if I was there a little longer things would have been different because I was building myself up.

“It has been difficult for me recently not having a club at the start of the season. I had offers on the table this summer, but they didn’t really seem like a good fit for me and my family.

“It then became a waiting game. But as soon as I got a phone call to come here, it was an easy yes. As soon as I spoke to the manager, the choice was easy to come back to the league.

St Mirren ready to offer John new contract

John is hoping to start at the SMiSA Stadium against Philippe Clément’s troops and he insists he can’t wait to get going.

“Boxing Day will be my first start since probably the end of March.

“But I have the training in me. I feel completely fit. I’ve made a few appearances coming off the bench, so I’m not far from being fully fit.

“I wouldn’t wish what I went through on anyone. It’s easy to let this go to your head. I tried to stay as active as possible. I worked out once or twice a day while waiting for that phone call.