Rangers looking at potential £5m fee for Ross Stewart
Rangers could be forced into paying a hefty price if they are serious about bringing in striker Ross Stewart, according to his old boss Stuart Kettlewell.
The 25-year-old was managed by Kettlewell at Ross County and his fellow Scot thinks Rangers would be wise to pursue a deal, even if he ends up costing a big amount.
Dubbed the ‘Loch Ness Drogba’ by adoring Sunderland fans, the forward has bagged 22 goals in SkyBet League One as the Black Cats push for a return to the Championship.
And Kettlewell believes with English clubs no doubt interested, Rangers will have to be competitive in their bidding to beat them to his former player’s signature.
“To my mind, he has every attribute you’d want from a striker when you consider his hold-up play, his pace, his ability to finish with his head and feet,” he told the Daily Record (14th April).
“I’m very friendly with Ross’ agent, I speak to him regularly and I think it’s going to be a situation where a number of clubs down south will be prepared to pay significant sums to get their hands on someone like him.
“So it looks like Rangers will have to do something similar if they’re serious.
“Are we talking £4million or £5million? I don’t know but I’d imagine there are clubs down south prepared to pay that type of money.”
The Daily Record reported via their print edition yesterday [14 April, back page and page 56] that the Gers are lining up a move to sign Stewart and that Sunderland are braced for bids.
Morelos Replacement?
With Alfredo Morelos’ contract expiring in summer 2023, it makes sense for Rangers to start looking at replacements should El Bufalo decide to leave for pastures new.
That said Ross Stewart seems like a bit of a gamble given his patchy record in Scottish football, particularly if he ends up costing the kind of price Kettlewell is bigging him up to be.
This is his first season of really banging in the goals in a Sunderland side strong for the level and it remains to be seen whether he can produce this sort of form on a consistent basis.
Factor in the performances of Kemar Roofe during Morelos’ injury abscence and it seems silly to splash so much cash on a player who represents a bit of an unknown quantity at the moment.
Save the money, assess where Morelos sees his future in the summer and make an appropriate decision from there on.
In other Rangers news, this MSP congratulated the club on their success against Braga.