New Rangers signing Cedric Itten has revealed his first day at the club involved lots of rain and ‘everyone joking’.
The striker completed a move to Ibrox yesterday, with Rangers paying three million francs to St. Gallen as Steven Gerrard added competition to his forward line.
The 23-year-old’s arrival wasn’t accompanied by the usual fanfare given he’s coming from the relative unknown regions of Swiss football.
He, though, is excited about the big step up and is already eyeing up a battle with rivals Celtic for the title.
“(My first day was) rainy and everyone was joking: Welcome to Glasgow…,” he joked to Blick.
“It was incredible to soak up this club’s history, to see this incredible stadium, the cup room. How the whole history is celebrated with the 54 titles.
“I see the stadium, the enthusiasm of the fans here and I think everyone sees the pictures of one of the greatest duels in the world. You can achieve a lot here.
“The biggest goal is to become champion – and to prevent the 10th title of Celtic.”
The iconic status he built up at Anfield has been used to great advantage since his arrival, with many players keen to make the switch and work under him.
That was certainly the case for Itten, who feels he has plenty to learn from a man he idolised as a player.
“He is an incredibly impressive personality,” he said.
“I felt total interest from him and also from the club. And I know that I can learn a lot from such a legend.
“I still remember when we had the prelude in Liverpool in the U19 of FC Basel and were then allowed to watch the big boys in Anfield.
“Gerrard nailed a free-kick that has remained in my head to this day.”
Fortunately for Itten, he will not have to wait long for his Rangers debut, with the Scottish Premiership having already kicked off.
Steven Gerrard’s side started their campaign with a 1-0 win over Aberdeen four days ago and are set to host St Mirren at Ibrox on Sunday, with Itten saying the plan is for him to train on Friday ahead of potentially featuring in that game.
“We’re still playing Europa League on Thursday in Leverkusen, so I’m not yet eligible to play,” he added.
“But the plan is for me to train for the first time on Friday and maybe play for the first time against St. Mirren on Sunday.
“Everything is going so fast now, and I want to be there too. I’m hot, and I want to go full throttle. And they also know here that I have had intensive months with St. Gallen.”
