Rangers receive definite answer from Panathinaikos midfielder Dimitris Kourbelis around mooted summer transfer
Rangers will not be signing Panathinaikos midfielder Dimitris Kourbelis this summer after he opted to renew his contract in Greece instead.
The Gers sent scouts to watch the Athens derby back in February, with Kourbelis one of the players they were keeping an eye on as they look to bolster their squad ahead of the new season.
But Kourbelis has now informed Rangers that he won’t be making the switch to Glasgow in the offseason, with the player making clear his future plans lie away from Ibrox.
“Panathinaikos’ Dmitris Kourbelis has reportedly rejected the possibility of joining Rangers this summer, he has already informed the Scottish side,” wrote reliable journalist Georgios Sideridis on his personal Twitter account (4 April).
Blow
We’d be lying if we said we were experts on the career of Kourbelis, but if Beale wanted to bring him in then it’s a blow that he won’t be.
Able to play in both defensive midfield and in central defence, he would have offered great experience and versatility to the squad.
Filip Helander is out of contract and expected to leave the club, while the futures of Glen Kamara, Ryan Jack and John Lundstram is also up in the air so there is clearly a gap in the squad that will need filling.
But thankfully this decision has come early in the plans for the summer window and Rangers should now be able to pivot and move on to their next target rather than waiting around to see if he wanted to join.
It’s going to be a busy summer so we must be prepared for not everything to go our way, and this is the first of many that will take place.
But there is plenty of time to get things right and bring in who Beale needs, because he needs to be backed this summer to challenge Celtic.
In other Rangers news, official club partner feels “time is right” for 224-app ace to leave Ibrox.