Rangers want to sign ‘no-nonsense, reliable defender’ this summer – Jonny McFarlane
Rangers will look to sign at least one no-nonsense central defender in the summer transfer window, according to journalist Jonny McFarlane.
Michael Beale has already admitted that he is hopeful of adding around five new faces to the squad this summer, while also admitting that any other exits will also need to be replaced to keep numbers up in the squad.
With Filip Helander set to leave at the end of his contract and some question marks around John Souttar’s future after an injury hit maiden season, McFarlane was asked on Rangers Review (10 April) when the club would be recruiting some solid, reliable defenders and he was adamant in his answer.
“In the summer,” he wrote (10 April).
“There’s no doubt Michael Beale is on the hunt for at least one no-nonsense, reliable defender. Any others will depend on departures.”
Necessity
Rangers have a lot of big holes in the squad for the new season, but one of them is absolutely central defence.
When everyone is fit we have got great options with Connor Goldson, Ben Davies, John Souttar and Leon King, but King could potentially head out on loan and Davies and Souttar have fitness issues.
That means that Beale needs another man to come in and form a steady partnership, but also someone whose main strength is defending and not their abilities on the ball.
That will help us to look more solid when we come up against other top sides, but the task is to find someone not too expensive as that profile isn’t necessarily required for the majority of our games.
Beale has clearly identified a gaping hole in the squad that he wants to address, so it will be interesting to see who he wants to bring in to fill it.
In other Rangers news, the club are battling with Celtic to sign a Premier League starlet on a free transfer.