Pete Hanson

Thu 13 July 2023 16:10, UK

Jose Cifuentes delivered a clear and concise message to LAFC fans in Wednesday’s 3-0 MLS over St Louis City, amid continued links to Rangers.

Football Scotland reported on Wednesday (12 July) that the Gers are still in negotiations with the MLS side about signing the midfielder this summer, even though they could sign him for free in December.

LAFC are said to be still holding out for a seven-figure sum for the Ecuador international, who scored his first goal of the campaign against St Louis.

Cifuentes had already produced an outstanding assist for Carlos Vela to open the scoring and rounded out the victory in injury time with an excellent low drive.

The Scottish Sun posted a video of the goal from the MLS Twitter account that showed he then celebrated by making a shushing gesture towards his own supporters before stopping to put his fingers in his ears.

Both parties need this one done

It says a lot about the stock Rangers place on Cifuentes that they are still negotiating to make a deal happen now when in just a few months they could take him on a free transfer upon the expiry of his contract.

Michael Beale wants the bulk of his squad together for the coming campaign, though, and clearly the intent to make the move happen is there from Cifuentes’ side.

You can understand why LAFC are playing hardball with the deal, especially given he could still prove influential for the rest of the MLS season and there is no real reason for them to relent on their asking price.

But Cifuentes is clearly irked and it was maybe not his best move to make such a direct gesture towards the supporters of a team he is still employed by, even if it may not be for much longer.

Such an action is likely to build a bigger disconnect between player and club, and the signs are that all parties need to get this one over the line as soon as possible.

In other Rangers news, James Tavernier could be heading for a surprise exit from Ibrox.