Rangers ruled out of move for Leicester City defender Harry Souttar after Champions League exit
Rangers have been ruled out of a move for Leicester City defender Harry Souttar after failing to qualify for the Champions League, according to BBC Sport’s Simon Stone.
The journalist reported for BBC Sport on Friday (1 September) that the centre-back is surplus to requirements at the King Power Stadium.
Harry’s brother John, also a centre-back, moved to Ibrox from Hearts last summer after signing a pre-contract agreement in January 2022.
“On deadline day six months ago, Australia international Harry Soutter was negotiating a move from Stoke to Leicester,” Stone wrote for BBC Sport.
“Following the Foxes relegation and change of manager, Soutter now appears surplus to requirements at the King Power.
“It will be interesting to see if anyone comes in for Soutter. Rangers had been mentioned but their failure to reach the Champions League group stages appears to rule that out.”
Missing out?
Rangers have undergone a huge revamp this summer, but Michael Beale has largely focused on attacking signings.
A total of nine players have arrived at Ibrox, but only two of those are defenders, with Leon Balogun returning to the club and Dujon Sterling arriving from Chelsea.
But the Scottish side are well-stocked in that area, with Balogun and John Souttar joining the likes of Connor Goldson, Ben Davies and Leon King as Beale’s central defensive options.
However, the club’s defensive frailties have been laid bare in the early stages of the new season, particularly in their Champions League play-off tie against PSV.
The Dutch side netted twice at Ibrox in the first leg clash before putting five past the Gers in the second leg, progressing to the group stages with a 7-3 aggregate win.
That could lead to Beale adding another defender on deadline day, but time is running out to complete a deal for Souttar.
In other Rangers news, Jim White has blasted the Gers live on talkSPORT in an “immensely disappointing” verdict.