Rangers agree £1.75m transfer fee to sign Nicolas Raskin from Standard Liege in January
Rangers have agreed a fee worth £1.75m with Standard Liege to sign Nicolas Raskin, with a deal expected to be finalised on Monday say Les Sport Plus.
Rangers have been locked in talks all month with the Belgian side about signing the midfielder this month, having agreed a deal with him for the summer in advance when his contract expired.
But after three rejected bids over the weekend, the clubs have finally come to an agreement with Rangers paying £1.75m and agreeing to a 20% sell-on clause for the future.
“Another offer came from Rangers FC, refused. The agreement finally in sight at the end of the evening: bonus included, the Standard will receive 2M€ (£1.75m) +20% on resale,” journalist Kevin Sauvage wrote on his personal Twitter account (30 January).
“The deal should be finalized on Monday. @lessportsplus”
Great deal
It’s certainly more than the board and Rangers wanted to pay for Raskin initially, but it’s fantastic news that the club haven’t put the deal at risk over such a small amount.
Rangers were hoping for a cut-price deal in the six-figure realm, but Liege were never likely to relent that much and were happy to have the player banished for the next six months.
That would also have allowed another club to come in and try to hijack any potential deal for the summer, and if Beale has identified Raskin as someone he wants then there is no reason for Rangers not to pay up.
Now he can come in this month and get used to the system and league for the second half of this season, before making a real run to become a first-team regular for next season.
This is a deal for now but also for the future, and it’s a positive sign that the club have backed Beale to this level to ensure he can build the squad he really wants.
In other Rangers news, transfer fee agreed overnight as Beale seals another January signing.