Mark Guidi shares update on Rangers interest in Lawrence Shankland with ‘doable’ verdict
Mark Guidi has provided an update on Rangers’ interest in Lawrence Shankland, suggesting that a deal during the January transfer window remains “doable”.
The Light Blues have been linked with the Hearts forward throughout the season so far as Philippe Clement looks to strengthen his forward line as Cyriel Dessers, Danilo and Kemar Roofe continue to struggle for form and fitness.
While some have suggested that the fee required to pull the 28-year-old out of Tynecastle may be too much for Rangers to pay this January, the Sunday Mail chief football writer Guidi still believes a deal can be reached.
Speaking on the Go Radio Football Show (2 January, 20:45) he said: “First of all, Rangers need to agree a fee with Hearts. It’s doable, but don’t forget in special circumstances James Anderson will step in to help Hearts.
“If it means a new contract for Lawrence Shankland to put to bed anything. Even if he signs a new deal and they sell him in the summer, you fatten him up. For Shankland, the pull of Rangers would be massive for him if the clubs agreed a fee, however, what kind of game time is he going to get?
“At this moment in time, you’d have him in the Scotland squad to go to Germany, who knows what the case will be five months from now. Certainly, if you’re Rangers, I would go and try and get him, go and see if there’s a deal to be done.”
Can be done
Rangers need a new number nine. That is now a non-negotiable at Ibrox as it is clear to supporters, pundits and likely Philippe Clement that the current options in the Belgian’s squad aren’t good enough to help the Gers lift the Premiership title.
Shankland appears to offer a solution to all the problems facing the Light Blues having been a consistent source of goals throughout his career in Scotland and he would likely hit the ground running immediately after arriving at Ibrox.
The deal may be incredibly expensive to complete as Hearts are reluctant to sell their star man, but that shouldn’t put Rangers off as that fee would bring with it a guarantee of success. The best players are also going to cost a bit more than the other options.
If the deal is “doable” as Guidi has suggested, Rangers can’t let it pass them by and they now have to put the wheels in motion to sign the Scotland international this month.
In other Rangers news, the Gers have suffered a new blow to their title hopes after Celtic received a new boost in January