Three years ago, Rangers playmaker Todd Cantwell was one of the hottest prospects in English football.
Tipped to make the international set up, he was considered by Aston Villa as the man to replace Jack Grealish who was heading to Man City for some £100m.
This story was reported by Sky Sports who then claimed that Norwich City were looking for £40-50m for their star man at a time when a move to Rangers seemed laughable.
Todd Cantwell in staggering fall from grace as Rangers exit looms
Fast forward three years and Todd Cantwell is leaving Ibrox via the backdoor for a fee said to be ‘pretty low’ by journalist Alan Nixon.
Michael Beale claimed that Cantwell arrived on a free transfer in January 2023 but it is a far cry from Premier League and Bundesliga interest.
Speaking last year, the 26-year old revealed that a move to Bayern Munich had all but been agreed, only for Norwich to pull the plug:
“It was close, it was concrete but that’s something I won’t go into the details of. There’s a lot of people that still work within these clubs and you never know when your paths are going to cross.
“For whatever reason they didn’t come to an agreement. It wasn’t to do with me, it was to do with the clubs. The conversations were real and the interest was definitely real though.”
What has happened?
Cantwell needs to find consistency to finally fulfill potential
Rangers fans have seen at first hand what Todd Cantwell is capable of on his day.
Under Beale, his performance in the 3-0 win over Celtic at Ibrox was sensational and looked like the start of something good.
The reality, is that it never got better and Cantwell was frequently posted missing in Old Firm derbies and European games other than the odd cameo.
The ignominy of being substituted before the half hour mark against Aris Limassol perhaps best summing up his demise.
Asked by Philippe Clement to do a job for the team, the Gers boss could be seen screaming at Cantwell to follow instructions.
He didn’t, and Ross McCausland replaced him before half-time.
This is the third time that Cantwell has fallen out of favour at a club.
There comes a point when he will have to look at himself, and at his own failings rather than either downing tools or blaming others.
Look at Matt O’Riley.
He’s just left Celtic for £30m for the Premier League, the sort of move that Todd Cantwell should be making.
The difference, is that O’Riley produced his best consistently and when it mattered, Cantwell only produced his in a couple of purple patches.
Cantwell is every bit as good a player having proved that he can perform in the Premier League, however, those days, and a £40-50m valuation, seem like a lifetime, never mind three years ago.
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