The Club World Cup kicks off in a week, and one ex-Rangers star is looking to use the tournament as a chance to show he’s still got it.
Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami take on Al Ahly from Egypt in the first game of the highly-anticipated tournament next Saturday.
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Former Rangers hero Ryan Kent will also take part in the new-look tournament.
Kent signed with American side Seattle Sounders at the end of March and the Rave Green are taking part in the 32-team tournament.
The winger told his club in an interview: “These are the stages that you want to play on as a footballer and showcase yourself and your team’s ability against the best teams in the world.
“It’s a tournament with all the best teams around the world, so it’s quite exciting.”
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Rangers splashed the cash on the wide man, forking out around £7million for the Englishman in 2019 after a loan spell at the Ibrox side.
Kent scored 33 and assisted 56 in 218 games for the Light Blues, and now he wants to show the world that he’s still got it.
He said: “You still want to show people across Europe and worldwide what your abilities are as a footballer and what you can still do with the ball.
“It was a perfect opportunity to put myself in and be back on the world stage and showing people what I can do.”
Kent picked up a league title and Scottish cup during his spell at Rangers, and came close to a Europa League too, missing out on penalties in the 2022 final vs Eintracht Frankfurt.
He wants to use these experiences to shock the world with his Seattle Sounders side, saying: “If you ever want to win trophies, you have to approach every game like it’s a final. You have to set a good tempo to the start of the tournament and get off to a good start and showing other teams that you’re not just here to take part.”
Kent’s side have no easy task in the tournament, with three games in a week.
The Sounders will take on Botafogo of Brazil, then Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid, whilst rounding out the group stage with a test against newly-crowned European champions, PSG.
The ex-Rangers man has played nine times for his new club, after a five-month spell as a free agent having left Fenerbache in October last year.
He has yet to score in the States, but has picked up three assists.
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