Rangers’ potential signing of Leicester City defender Harry Souttar should not be disregarded, as transfer insider Dean Jones drops his verdict on a move for the centre-back at Ibrox.
Michael Beale has seen his Gers squad undergo a rebuild as he aims to lead the side to a Scottish Premiership triumph this season.
Rangers transfer news – Harry Souttar
According to the Daily Record, Rangers are monitoring Souttar’s situation before Friday’s transfer deadline. Beale is a fan of the Leicester centre-back and is keen to see him team up with his brother, John Souttar, at Ibrox.
The Gers’ stumbling block could come in their ability to find an agreement with Leicester over the financial side of a deal, likely to be a season-long loan at the time of writing. Fortunately for Rangers, the arrival of new Foxes boss Enzo Maresca means Souttar, who joined the former Premier League champions for £15m in January, has fallen down the pecking order at the King Power Stadium. This could pave the way for Beale to move on the Australian international, as he aims to bolster his backline.
Meanwhile, The Athletic have claimed that Rangers’ deal to sign Souttar could go through closer to the deadline, with the transfer window closing on Friday evening. A deal could be funded by the departure of current Rangers centre-back Ben Davies, who was left out of the club’s European squad this season.
Rangers summer signings | Fee |
|---|---|
Danilo - Feyenoord | £5.4m |
Cyriel Dessers - Cremonese | £4.3m |
Sam Lammers - Atalanta | £3m |
Jose Cifuentes - LAFC | £1.2m |
Dujon Sterling - Chelsea | Free |
Kieran Dowell - Norwich | Free |
Jack Butland - Crystal Palace | Free |
Leon Balogun - QPR | Free |
Abdallah Sima - Brighton | Loan |
All fees from Transfermarkt | |
What has Jones said about Rangers and Souttar?
Jones believes that Beale doesn’t bat off many questions but is intrigued by how he has played down a potential move for Souttar, having been told not to disregard the signing this summer.
The transfer insider told GIVEMESPORT: “I like the way that Beale talks about stuff, and, lots of the time, he tries to be direct and clear in his answers. He doesn't shirk away from many. It feels like fringe players will be offloaded more than anything. But the Souttar interest has caught my attention the most recently because Beale did play this one down, but the links have persisted.
“I'm actually told this is not one we should be disregarding. So, I’d say that this is the one I've got my eyes on the most at the moment with Rangers. I don't think there will be loads of transfer activity, but Souttar could be an interesting one.”
What next for Rangers?
While Beale focuses on adding to his squad, several members of the current Rangers side are linked with moves away from Ibrox. As well as Davies, Football Scotland claims that Jon McLaughlin, John Lundstram, Glen Kamara, and Scott Wright could seal their departures from Glasgow this summer. However, Beale could be worried about his forward options, after Jones told GIVEMESPORT that £6m signing Danilo has struggled to hit the ground running in front of goal this term.
Following Wednesday's disappointing Champions League play-off second-leg defeat at PSV Eindhoven, the Gers must prepare to take on arch-rivals Celtic in the first Old Firm clash of the season at Ibrox, in what could be a season-defining weekend for Beale's side.