Nick Ware

Sat 17 July 2021 18:10, UK

Alfredo Morelos is prepared to ramp up his exit demands as Rangers refuse to relent on their valuation of the 25-year-old striker, according to A Bola.

The Portuguese news outlet claims Morelos is “determined to start an arm wrestling with Rangers officials to release him”, so that he can sign a five-year contract with Porto.

The Gers forward is said to have “already obtained information” from his Colombian compatriots Luis Diaz and Mateus Uribe about the club and city in general.

However, Steven Gerrard is still determined to keep hold of his star striker, while the “uncompromising” Rangers have assured that he will not leave for less than £12.9million, something the Portuguese giants responded to with a £10.3milllion bid along with a 20% sell-on clause.

But it looks like pressure is ramping up on the Scottish Premiership champions, as Morelos has “assured his closest circle” that he wants to exit Ibrox this summer and move to Porto.

Stand our ground

Porto are a massive club, potentially the wealthiest in Portugal, and we shouldn’t be bullied into lowering our asking price.

It’s a matter of a few million, and that’s much more significant for us than it is them.

They may not have finances on par with the Premier League clubs, but surely Porto can stump up an extra £2.6million for an international striker who has consistently scored goals in Scotland and the Europa League.

He’s surely going there with the intention of becoming their first-choice striker, and thus they should be paying the appropriate amount for that.

It’s hard to begrudge him the chance to test his talents in the Champions League, but if reports are true that he is set to ramp up his exit strategy, then he ought to be reminded of the club that gave him a golden opportunity to prove himself to a wider audience, and who supported him through tough times.

In other Rangers news, this Premier League player has made a Light Blues transfer admission and aimed a thinly-veiled swipe at Celtic.